The Bombay High Court has declared that public sector banks lack the power to issue ‘Look Out Circulars’ (LOCs) against Indians and foreigners based on the central government’s office memoranda.
The verdict, delivered by justices GS Patel and Madhav Jamdar, addressed a series of petitions challenging the validity of such LOCs. While the court clarified that the central government’s office memoranda were not unconstitutional in themselves, it deemed the practice of empowering bank managers to issue LOCs as arbitrary.
It’s important to note that this ruling does not impact existing travel restrictions imposed by tribunals or criminal courts.
LOCs, issued by the Union ministry of home affairs’ Bureau of Immigration, allow authorities to prevent individuals from leaving India. These circulars, first introduced in 2010 and subsequently amended, have faced legal scrutiny, particularly regarding clauses related to the “economic interest of India.”
Petitioners argued that such circulars infringed upon fundamental rights, especially Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. They maintained that the financial interests of banks should not be equated with the economic interests of the nation.
In response, the MHA defended the validity of the office memoranda, stating that they served broader national interests such as security, sovereignty, and counter-terrorism. The ministry emphasized the presence of checks and balances in the issuance of LOCs and asserted that they did not amount to a blanket infringement of fundamental rights.
