Actor Imran Khan is set to approach the Bombay High Court against a Mumbai Police notice directing him to leave India by October 28 for allegedly violating immigration rules by participating in a political protest in the city.
Mr. Khan, a U.S. citizen and Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholder, is expected to file the petition on October 16 or October 19 through his advocate Zulfiquar Memon. The plea is likely to seek urgent relief against the departure directive, which the actor has described in a draft petition as “drastic”.
The proposed challenge follows Mr. Khan’s brief detention during an agitation at August Kranti Maidan on October 10. The protest was organised by the Cockroach Janta Party, with demonstrators demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the Special Intensive Revision issue. Around 600 protesters, including social activist Tushar Gandhi, were detained during the Mumbai demonstration, according to the report.
In the draft petition, Mr. Khan is expected to argue that no provision under the current law or statutory rules prevents an OCI cardholder from participating in a peaceful protest. The petition will also contest the legal basis for directing him to leave the country after his participation in the demonstration.
According to officials cited in the report, the departure order invokes Section 7(2)(C) and Section 29 of the Immigration and Foreigners Act. Section 7(2)(C) empowers the government to issue directions prohibiting, regulating or restricting a foreign national’s presence or continued presence in India, including an order that the person should not remain in the country or a specified area.
Section 29 allows the government to direct the removal of a foreign national for contravening the Act, its rules or orders, or on the basis of an adverse security report. The provision also gives enforcement officers powers considered necessary to implement the removal direction. The notice reportedly warns that deportation procedures may be initiated if Mr. Khan does not leave India by October 28.
The matter is expected to be mentioned for an urgent hearing before a division Bench comprising Chief Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi and Justice Advait Sethna. The proposed case will place the police action, the application of immigration provisions and the rights of an OCI cardholder participating in a public demonstration before the court.
Mr. Khan, who is the nephew of actor Aamir Khan and has appeared in several Hindi films, was among those detained during the August Kranti Maidan protest. The Bombay High Court’s response to the proposed petition will determine the immediate status of the departure directive and any further action under Section 29.
