NRIs Who Harass Their Wives Or Abandon Them Could Face Cancellation Of Their Passport

A high-level committee has made a recommendation to the centre that Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) who are found harassing or deserting their wives could face impoundment or cancellation of passport, reported Hindustan Times.

According to the report, to help abandoned women get justice, a nine-member panel headed by retired judge Arvind Kumar Goel (who is also the former chairman of Punjab's state commission for NRIs), has recommended a special provision to impound or cancel the passport of offending NRIs based on the wife's complaint.

The panel also recommended that cases of domestic violence should be included in the extradition treaties signed between India and other countries, elaborated the report.

“We have received several cases from women who have been deserted by their NRI husbands. To help these women we have made the recommendations to the centre,” HT report quoted an official as saying.

While talking to the paper, an official affirmed that both External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi have taken up the issue seriously and have also addressed it on several public forums. "Once the passport of the NRI man has been cancelled and he is present in India, he will not be allowed to leave the country till the case is settled. And If abroad, he will be deported back to India," said the official.

According to reports, the ministry of external affairs (MEA) has constituted a committee which will look into various legal and regulatory challenges and will also suggest measures to address them.

Compulsory registration of NRI marriages and increasing financial aid from $3,000 to $6,000 provided by Indian missions to the women who have been abandoned by their husbands were among the key recommendations made by the panel.