The Himachal Pradesh High Court has held that a person born in India between January 26, 1950 and July 1, 1987 is entitled to Indian citizenship by birth under Section 3 of the Citizenship Act, 1955, subject to the statutory exceptions.

The Court observed that a passport application cannot be rejected on the ground of foreign nationality when the applicant's birth certificate establishes that she was born within Indian territory during the relevant period.

Justice Sandeep Sharma remarked that: "Admittedly, in the case at hand, date of birth of the petitioner is 03.05.1972 and as such, for all intents and purposes, she can be said to be citizen of India. If it is so, prayer made on her behalf for issuance of passport cannot be turned down on the ground that she is not a citizen of India."

The petitioner, Shitla Devi, approached the Himachal Pradesh High Court after her passport application was rejected on the basis of an adverse Police Verification Report (PVR), which described her as a Nepali national. She contended that she was born on May 3, 1972, at Patlikuhl, Manali, Himachal Pradesh, and relied upon her birth certificate to establish her Indian citizenship.

The State authorities opposed the petition, relying on a subsequent verification report which described the petitioner and her son as permanent residents of Nepal. However, an earlier police verification report had recorded them as residents of Patlikuhl and citizens of India.

The High Court observed that under Section 3 of the Citizenship Act, 1955, every person born in India between January 26, 1950 and July 1, 1987, is an Indian citizen by birth, subject to the statutory exceptions. Since the petitioner's birth certificate established that she was born in Himachal Pradesh on May 3, 1972, she could be treated as an Indian citizen and her passport application could not be rejected on the ground of foreign nationality.

The Court also noted inconsistencies between the police and administrative verification reports and directed the State authorities to issue a fresh Police Verification Report concerning her character and residence within two weeks, specifically taking into account Section 3 of the Citizenship Act, 1955.

Date of Decision: 01.10.2026