SRINAGAR: PDP president Mehbooba Mufti's daughter Iltija on Friday hit out at the government for curbing her right to travel abroad by issuing a “conditional and country specific” passport .

She also accused Regional Passport Officer and J&K police’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of “misleading” the court on the issuance of passport to her.
Iltija had applied for her passport renewal in June 2022. In February Iltija approached Jammu and Kashmir High Court and sought its intervention for issuance of passport. On Thursday, Iltija was issued a two year United Arab Emirates (UAE) specific passport for higher studies.
“The Regional Passport Officer, Kashmir Davinder Kumar and the CID misled the honourable judiciary,” she said while addressing a press conference in Srinagar.
“The RPO informed the court that they issued a passport to me.
It is a two-year passport and is mentioned clearly that it is valid only for the UAE . The Deputy Solicitor General also requested the court that my petition may be dismissed as the passport has been issued to Iltija. What passport is this?” she asked.
Iltija said she is an Indian and law-abiding citizen and is being deprived from the fundamental right to travel abroad.
“I'm not involved in any FIR or any other anti-national activity, how come the passport officer issued me a conditional passport?” she asked.
The PDP chief's daughter claimed that the Official Secrets Act has been invoked against her which is usually invoked for espionage.
“Am I a fugitive? a terrorist or anti-national that I am being punished? If I criticise the government, is it like talking against the country? What is my fault?" she asked.
" If you (CID)are so confident about your report, then why did you have to invoke the Official Secrets Act? Why do you not want the document to come out in the public domain?" Iltija asked.
She claimed that she was being treated like a hardened criminal and this all was happening because she is the daughter of a former chief minister. .
Iltija said she will fight for her rights.
"I will not withdraw my petition even as there is tremendous pressure on us to withdraw it. I will continue to fight it in the court," she said. (UNI)

SRINAGAR: PDP president Mehbooba Mufti's daughter Iltija has been issued a passport for two years, officials said on Thursday.
According to officials at Regional Passport Office the passport was issued to Iltija which is valid for two years from April 5, 2023 till April 4, 2025.
“As per her application she wished to pursue higher studies in UAE. We have issued the passport which is valid for two years and it will be reviewed once the validity is over,” said the officials at RPO.
In normal cases, the validity of the passport is ten years.
Iltija had applied for her passport renewal in June 2022. In February Iltija approached Jammu and Kashmir High Court and sought its intervention for issuance of passport after the passport office denied the travel document citing no clearance from the J&K Police’s criminal investigation department. Last month, CID sought dismissal of the writ petition filed by Iltija for issuance of a passport saying that her final verification report was forwarded to the concerned department last month.
Mehbooba Mufti and her mother Gulshan Nazir, also wife of former Union Home Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed, had applied for passport renewal in March 2020. While Mehbooba’s passport application is still pending but the authorities released the passport of her mother in February on the directions of J&K High Court.
UNI