Madras HC dismisses SL woman’s Indian citizenship claim

Dismissing a petition from the daughter of a Sri Lankan woman Sayanthi who was detained at the Anna International Airport, Chennai from July 1, Justice T Raja said, “Although she has produced the Aadhaar card, driving license, voter identity card and the marriage registration certificate of her mother with Premkumar, her mother has not made any application before the competent authority seeking conferment of her status as an Indian citizen.” “Above all, since Sri Lankan government has admitted the status of the petitioner’s mother as Sri Lankan and also issued the passport, the writ petition fails,” the judge added.

Owing to the ethnic strife, Sayanthi had migrated to Tamil Nadu in 1989. Since then, she has been residing in Tamil Nadu. Subsequently, she married one Premkumar, an Indian citizen in 1992 and out of wed lock three children were born. Her marriage was also registered here, and she obtained Aadhar card, driving license and voter’s card.

She applied for a passport in 2004 and due to family situation she went to Italy in 2007 as house maid and has been visiting India on and off. While so, when she landed in Chennai on June 22, 2018 to attend her daughter’s marriage at Tiruchy she was detained by the authorities at Chennai International Airport on finding that she had fraudulently obtained the Indian passport.

Moreover, authorities found that Sayanthi held a Sri Lankan passport issued on October 12, 1989 which had expired on October 11, 1994.