A week after a Noida-based woman in an inter-faith marriage alleged communal harassment at the passport office here, the police on Tuesday said they found discrepancy in her application form.
In its verification report to the Regional Passport Office, the police said the woman, Tanvi Seth, did not provide true details of her residential address.
Living in Noida
While Ms. Seth had mentioned Lucknow as her residence, Senior Superintendent of Police Deepak Sharma said during investigation it was found that she had been living in Noida and not in the U.P. capital.
According to the rules, in order to clear police verification for a passport, a person must be living at a particular location for one year, the officer said.
“We have sent a report to the regional passport office saying that she was not continuously living at the said address [in Lucknow] for the past one year,” Mr. Sharma told reporters.
The police, however, did not clarify if the discrepancy in residential proof could lead to seizure of Ms. Seth’s passport, saying that the passport officials would take the next step.
Ms. Seth and her husband Anas Siddiqui were issued passports last Thursday, a day after they narrated on Twitter how they were allegedly subjected to humiliation on communal lines by an official at the passport office.
While Ms. Seth had gone there for a new passport, her husband Mr. Siddiqui wanted to renew his.
The issue came to light when Ms. Seth reached out to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj complaining that she faced harassment at the passport office for having a Muslim husband and was chided by the granting officer for not changing her surname after marriage.