Passport should be handed over after acquittal: Karnataka High Court

Bengaluru: The High Court has ordered that the passport of the accused in criminal cases should be returned to him after he is acquitted by the trial court. The petition filed by Francis Xavier Crasto of Bengaluru, who was an accused in a criminal case.

The single judge bench of justice M Naga Prasanna heard the petition and said If the accused is acquitted in criminal cases, the trial court should not keep the passport on the same basis without waiting for the expiry of the appeal period. The High Court has directed the concerned court to return the passport to the petitioner Francis Xavier.

After examining the order of the trial court, which denied to hand over the passport as the period for appeal has not expired , the court ruled that they cannot keep the seized passport because they can file an appeal against the order of the trial court.

In 2015, a criminal case was registered against Mumbai-based Francis Xavier at Soladevanahalli Police Station in Bangalore. The passport of the accused was seized by the Bangalore Rural District Court. Later, on April 12, 2023, the accused in the case was declared innocent and acquitted from the case. However, the passport was refused to be returned after the acquittal under Section 452 (seizure and return of property) of the CrPC. The trial court said that the passport will not be returned until the appeal period in the case is over. Challenging this order, Francis approached the High Court.