Delhi HC sets aside Centre’s decision rejecting OCI card to The Wire’s Siddharth Varadarajan

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday quashed a communication from the Union government rejecting an application submitted by The Wire’s founding editor Siddharth Varadarajan for an Overseas Citizen of India card, Bar and Bench reported.

Overseas Citizen of India is an immigration status that allows foreign citizens of Indian origin to live and work in India indefinitely. Varadarajan, who is a United States citizen, held a Person of Indian Origin card.

All Person of Indian Origin cards expired on December 31 and are no longer valid to enter into or stay in the country. This came after the Union government decided to merge the two card schemes.

Varadarajan moved the court after his application to convert his Person of Indian Origin status into an Overseas Citizen of India card was rejected, Bar and Bench reported.

On Tuesday, Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav noted that the communication issued by the Union government on April 2 informing Varadarajan about his application for an Overseas Citizen of India card being rejected did not have any reasons and cannot be sustained.

The judge added that reasons are the heart and soul of the order.

In response, the counsel for the Union government said that instructions will be sought from the authorities in the matter, the legal news portal reported.

However, the judge reiterated that the order cannot be...

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