Less than a month after it announced new measures for the passports—doing away with the address page and separate orange-coloured passport for the unskilled labour—the government on Tuesday shelved the plans following severe criticism from several quarters.
The Ministry of External Affairs announced that no new changes were being made to the passport either in changing the colour or removing the last page from the booklet.
The decision has come keeping in mind the political and social ramifications of the MEA order. The Kerala High Court had issued a notice to the government on a PIL filed against the move to introduce Orange coloured passport calling it discriminatory.
More importantly, the government acted swiftly as the budget session of the parliament has begun and regular proceedings will start on February 1. This will now deny the opposition, particularly Rahul Gandhi-led Congress and the left parties from raising the issue inside the house. The issue had a potential of uniting the the opposition parties and some of the NDA allies in opposing the change in colour.
Another key factor that forced the government's hand is the demands from several individuals and NGOs over removal of last page of the passport which carries the address of the holder. This would have created practical problem for a large number of people who use passport as a valid proof for address, date of birth and establishing identity. The likely inconvenience caused to the public would have led to resentment against the government.
Acting swiftly, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj along with her deputy General (Retd) V.K. Singh reviewed the decision. “After comprehensive discussions with the various stakeholders, the MEA has decided to continue with the current practice of printing of the last page of the passport and not to issue a separate passport with orange colour jacket to ECR passport holders,” the MEA said in a statement.
What Swaraj has done is to take a political decision to overturn a decision taken by bureaucrats of MEA and the Ministry of Women and Child Development which had recommended not to print the last page of passport booklet. The argument was that it would help children with single parent, who doesn't want to name their father or mother on the passport’s last page.
MEA also took the decision to issue a passport with orange colour jacket to passport holders with ECR status, with a view to help and assist them on priority basis. The MEA at that time had argued that orange passport would help the less educated labour going to work in foreign countries easily negotiate the emigration process.
But it was what led to huge hue and cry. Rahul Gandhi termed this move as discriminatory and said it would treat labourers as second class citizens. Even the left parties joined the chorus saying the move was discriminatory. The issue was likely to be raised in the budget session.
The PIL filed in the Kerala High Court had threatened to the turn the matters much more embarrassing for the government. The PIL claimed that the separate coloured passports for the migrant workers would make their underprivileged status public, which in turn was a grave invasion of their right to privacy and dignity.
The government now appears to have cut its loses.
