The Bombay High Court will hear on October 26 the petition filed by actor Imran Khan, a US citizen, challenging a police notice directing him to leave India by October 28. Khan was detained by Mumbai Police for taking part in it.
This comes after Khan was issued a 'Leave India' notice on October 15 for his alleged participation in a protest in Mumbai against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The action has been taken under the Immigration Act, which bars foreign citizens from participating in such demonstrations in India.
Senior counsel Venkatesh Dhond, appearing for Khan, mentioned the plea on Monday before a bench of Chief Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi and Justice Advait Sethna, seeking an urgent hearing.
Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh, appearing for the Union government, sought time, stating that he received a copy of the petition only on Monday morning.
The court then stated that it would hear the plea on October 26.
As Khan does not have any criminal case pending against him, the bench agreed that hearing the case on October 26 would be fine and directed Khan to add the Maharashtra government as a respondent to the petition.
"He (Khan) has no criminal antecedents and no case filed or pending against him. He has been living in India since he was two years old. He did not even attend any protest. He had reached halfway when he was detained by the police and then let go," Dhond said.
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What happened?
The 43-year-old actor, who had been briefly detained during a demonstration here related to the protests seeking Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar's resignation, claimed in his petition that he had not participated in any gathering and had no association with the organisers of the protests.
Khan has also received a show-cause notice from the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO), seeking clarification as to why his Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) status should not be revoked.
What does the petition say?
Imran Khan, the nephew of Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan, claimed in his petition that the notice issued by the Mumbai Police was "illegal, arbitrary, perverse and drastic".
The police notice "reflects the patent non-application of mind and the arbitrary targeting" of Khan as a public figure, claimed the petition, filed through advocates Memon and MZM Legal.
Khan sought the quashing of the notice and also requested the court to grant a stay on its operation during the pendency of his petition and restrain the authorities from taking any coercive steps against him.
"Not only is the notice manifestly disproportionate, but if implemented, it would reduce the very principles of natural justice that the authorities are duty-bound to uphold, to nothing but a dead letter," the petition said.
The actor claimed that he had no association, affiliation, or connection whatsoever with any organisation or institution involved in organising the protest against the CEC.
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What police said on deportation?
According to Mumbai Police, the actor was served the departure order after authorities invoked provisions under Section 7 (2)(C) and Section 29 of the Immigration and Foreigners Act, which grant powers to the government to restrict the movement of foreign nationals and enforce their mandatory removal.
Under Section 7 (2)(C), the government has the authority to issue directions prohibiting, regulating, or restricting the presence of any foreigner, specifically empowering officials to order that an individual "shall not remain in India or in any specified area therein."
Section 29 permits the government to direct the removal of a foreign national for contravening any provisions, rules, or orders of the Act or pursuant to an adverse security report.