Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai
Mumbai, Oct 19: The Bombay High Court on Monday said it would hear on October 26 actor Imran Khan Pal’s petition challenging a ‘leave India notice’ issued by the Foreigners Regional Registration Officer (FRRO), Mumbai, directing him to leave the country by October 28.
The notice was issued to the US national on October 14, four days after he was detained during a protest in Mumbai.
Senior counsel Venkatesh Dhond, appearing for the actor, mentioned the matter for an urgent hearing before the bench led by the Chief Justice. He submitted that his client, who had been residing in India since the age of two, had been asked to leave the country without prior notice, a hearing or reasons being provided.
Responding to a query, Dhond said the actor had no criminal antecedents and that this had also been mentioned in the petition.
The bench asked whether copies of the petition had been served on all parties. Dhond said they had been served, while Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh, appearing for the Centre and the FRRO, a central authority under the Bureau of Immigration, said he had received a copy only 10 minutes earlier.
Dhond sought a hearing the following day, but Singh suggested October 26. Dhond argued that the date would leave very little time before the October 28 deadline for the actor to leave India. Singh, however, assured the court that the respondents would be prepared to argue the matter. The court also asked the actor to implead the State as a party to the proceedings.
The actor, who is nearly 44, filed the petition on Saturday through advocate Zulfiquar Memon, challenging the notice as “arbitrary, unreasoned and wholly misconceived” and contrary to the principles of natural justice.
The petition contends that the notice violates his fundamental rights to equality under Article 14 and to life under Article 21 of the Constitution. It emphasises that these constitutional guarantees are available to foreigners residing in India as well.
According to the petition, the FRRO issued the departure notice on October 14 under the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, within four days of a protest against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Mumbai, which the actor had attended.
The notice reportedly cites a purported contravention of provisions of the Act, rules and orders without specifying the relevant provisions.
The petition argues that merely reproducing the wording of a statutory provision without providing specific reasons is insufficient in law. It further contends that the actor, who has lived in India for 42 years, is apparently being sought to be expelled solely because a first information report (FIR) has been registered against him, even though the investigation is still underway.
The alleged offences under Sections 223, 126(2), 189(2), 189(3) and 189(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, are all bailable and carry no punishment exceeding two years, the petition states. It adds that no charge-sheet has been filed, no court has taken cognisance of the case and no charges have been framed.
The petition further argues that even if a charge-sheet is filed, the court could decline to take cognisance, discharge the actor or acquit him if charges are framed and the case proceeds to trial.
Expelling him at this preliminary stage, the petition contends, would impose the ultimate consequence on the basis of a mere allegation and effectively condemn him simply because the police have recorded information about an alleged offence.
On Saturday, the actor was also served a fresh show-cause notice asking why his Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) status should not be cancelled under a provision of the Citizenship Act.
The actor is expected to seek urgent interim relief from the High Court on October 26, including a stay on the operation of the ‘leave India notice’. His final relief is to have the notice quashed and set aside.