The Crossbill News Desk
Observing that criticism of the country on international platforms cannot be taken lightly, the Delhi high court on Monday (February 16) made strong remarks while hearing a plea against the cancellation of an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card.
The case pertains to 82-year-old UK-based academic Amrit Wilson, whose OCI card was revoked by the Union government in 2023 on allegations of anti-India activities. Challenging the decision, Wilson approached the high court, which had issued notice to the Centre in May 2023.
During the hearing, the court referred to intelligence inputs submitted in a sealed cover by the government and underlined that the country’s image must be protected abroad.
According to Bar and Bench, Justice Pushpendra Kumar Kaurav, after examining the material, said, “We should not be such a tolerant State that we allow our own country to be criticised… maligned at international platform. There are some IB [Intelligence Bureau] reports against you. There are not only two tweets, there are allegations that you participated in anti-India activities. There are IB reports, I have seen it.”
Appearing for Wilson, senior advocate Trideep Pais argued that the show-cause notice served on her lacked specific details.
He submitted that although the government had earlier cited her posts on X relating to the farmers’ protest and Kashmir, the notice itself was not based on those posts.
Pais maintained that Wilson’s work was not anti-India and also objected to the practice of submitting evidence in a sealed envelope, noting that such a procedure has been discouraged by the apex court, Bar and Bench reported.
Central Government Standing Counsel Nidhi Raman countered that all publicly available material relied upon by the government had been shared with Wilson, while sensitive intelligence inputs were placed before the court in a sealed cover. Raman contended that the matter involved the integrity and sovereignty of India.
The court directed both Wilson and the Union government to file their written submissions and listed the matter for further hearing on August 27.
The case pertains to 82-year-old UK-based academic Amrit Wilson, whose OCI card was revoked by the Union government in 2023 on allegations of anti-India activities. Challenging the decision, Wilson approached the high court, which had issued notice to the Centre in May 2023.
During the hearing, the court referred to intelligence inputs submitted in a sealed cover by the government and underlined that the country’s image must be protected abroad.
According to Bar and Bench, Justice Pushpendra Kumar Kaurav, after examining the material, said, “We should not be such a tolerant State that we allow our own country to be criticised… maligned at international platform. There are some IB [Intelligence Bureau] reports against you. There are not only two tweets, there are allegations that you participated in anti-India activities. There are IB reports, I have seen it.”
Appearing for Wilson, senior advocate Trideep Pais argued that the show-cause notice served on her lacked specific details.
He submitted that although the government had earlier cited her posts on X relating to the farmers’ protest and Kashmir, the notice itself was not based on those posts.
Pais maintained that Wilson’s work was not anti-India and also objected to the practice of submitting evidence in a sealed envelope, noting that such a procedure has been discouraged by the apex court, Bar and Bench reported.
Central Government Standing Counsel Nidhi Raman countered that all publicly available material relied upon by the government had been shared with Wilson, while sensitive intelligence inputs were placed before the court in a sealed cover. Raman contended that the matter involved the integrity and sovereignty of India.
The court directed both Wilson and the Union government to file their written submissions and listed the matter for further hearing on August 27.
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