On Monday, a group led by “Goans for Goa” met with the commissioner for NRI affairs, pressing the government to extend a period of grace for canceled passport holders in order for them to apply for an OCI card.

Thomas Fernandes, a Candolim resident in North Goa’s Bardez taluka, went to the regional passport office (RPO) in Panaji on November 29 to relinquish his Indian passport. However, his Indian passport was canceled, citing “suppressed material information” and the fact that he was already a Portuguese citizen at the time of his Indian passport renewal in 2021.

Fernandes, who obtained Portuguese citizenship in 2015, was sent with a revocation notice for his Indian passport, citing a Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) circular dated November 30, 2022. According to the circular, the passports can be cancelled by invoking Section 10 of the Passports Act of 1967, because they were obtained by concealing material facts regarding acquiring foreign nationality, and “these holders, thus, were not eligible to obtain/apply for these passports.”

“I was not aware of this circular. Goans have been transcribing and registering their births in Portugal for a long time, even without acquiring a Portuguese passport. Earlier, at the time of surrendering the [Indian] passport, a fine was imposed and the surrender certificate was issued,” Fernandes explained.

He claims that he cannot apply for an Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) card without the surrender certificate.

At least 100 people have been canceled

In recent months, the passports of at least 100 people in Goa who went to relinquish their Indian passports, apparently uninformed of the MEA circular, have been canceled, and the issuing of OCI cards has been halted for them. The problem has created significant concern among Goans, some of whom are required to file for an X1-visa (entry visa).

According to Portuguese law, people born in Goa before December 19, 1961 – the day Goa became independent from Portuguese dominion – and two subsequent generations had the option of enrolling as Portuguese citizens.

With a Portuguese passport granting visa-free entry to several countries, including the United Kingdom and the European Union, many people in Goa have been transcribing their births in the Central Registry in Lisbon and acquiring Portuguese citizenship in order to take advantage of employment and educational opportunities available abroad. Persons of Indian heritage are not permitted to hold dual citizenship under the Indian Citizenship Act of 1955.

Prior to the MEA circular of November 2022, the passport office issued a penalty when someone resigned their Indian passport and issued a surrender certificate, allowing the applicant to apply for OCI status, according to Kennedy Afonso, convener of Goans for Goa. “After the circular, they started revoking passports. This circular was not put out in the public gazette or in any public domain. No amnesty period was given to people to surrender the passports. This sudden act has created uncertainty among Goans whose passports are being revoked and they have been compelled to obtain visas to stay in their land of origin… Why are people being denied the right to apply for OCI? One may revoke the passports, but one cannot revoke the origin of birth,” he stated.

According to Afonso, the bulk of individuals in Goa apply for Portuguese citizenship just to obtain the OCI card. “If OCI option was not there, most would not have applied for Portuguese citizenship. Our families reside in Goa. The ancestral assets and properties that we hold, which we have inherited from our forefathers and which our children are going to inherit, are in Goa,” he explained.

“Lakhs of people in Goa who have only transcribed their births in Portugal…how can they be considered Portuguese citizens?” he continued. We propose that all people who had their passports revoked be given a temporary surrender certificate.”

Issue was addressed in the Parliament

According to officials, the MEA directive was issued in response to a June 2020 verdict by the Kerala High Court, which stated that passport authorities do not have the authority to impose fines for violations of The Passports Act 1967, but may only initiate a prosecution.

Sadanand Shet Tanavde, Goa BJP president and Rajya Sabha MP, addressed the issue in Parliament last week, requesting the MEA to rethink the decision to revoke Indian passports based on birth registration in Portugal.

“The basis of this revocation by the RPO in Goa is the birth registration in Portugal… considered as effective date of acquiring citizenship. I propose that the Ministry allow the renewal of Indian passports for these individuals until they acquire the official citizenship document from the Portuguese government,” he added.

Tanavade stated that this action is critical to facilitating their travel and ensuring their safety during the ‘transition phase’ until their Portuguese passports arrive.

“We will raise the issue with the government,” said Narendra Sawaikar, commissioner for NRI Affairs. “Ideally, some interim relief, by temporarily allowing grant of OCI cards, should be given consideration for people whose passports have been revoked.”

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