New Delhi, 14 July   

The passport is a document issued by the government to "regulate the departure" of Indian citizens from the country, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Tuesday amid a raging debate over whether it can be used to verify citizenship.

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said passport is issued after due "verification" laid out by an established process and that less than eight per cent Indians currently hold the document.

Senior officials of the MEA during a briefing on the occasion of Passport Seva Divas on June 24 had described the passport as a travel document, and not a document to prove citizenship.

The remarks had come in response to a question on whether the passport can be used as proof of citizenship for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls being conducted by the Election Commission in several states.

The officials had said passport is issued to travel to foreign countries and it is not a document to prove citizenship. The remarks triggered sharp reactions from certain Opposition parties including the Congress as they wondered how passport cannot be reflection of a holder's citizenship.

The Congress had slammed the MEA and alleged that the government is laying the groundwork to arbitrarily deny citizenship rights to Indians with whom it disagrees.

"An Indian passport is a document that, as per the Passports Act, 1967, is issued by the Government of India to regulate the departure from India of citizens of India," Jaiswal said.

He was asked for a clarification on the matter.

"It is issued after due verification laid out by an established process. The issue of passports to Indian citizens or any other individual is governed by The Passports Act, 1967 and Passports Rules, 1980. Currently, less than eight per cent of Indian citizens hold a passport," he said.