Delhi High Court seeks Centre's response on Ashok Swain's plea to allow entry into India

The Delhi High Court on Friday issued notice to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on a plea filed by a Sweden-based academic of Indian-origin, Professor Ashok Swain, challenging the government's decision to blacklist him from entering India. .Justice Sachin Datta also issued notice on Swain's plea for interim relief. The case will be heard next on December 18. .Swain is an academic and writer of Indian origin holding an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card. He is currently a professor of peace and conflict research at Uppsala University in Sweden. Previously, the government had cancelled his OCI card. However, the decision was set aside twice by the High Court. In those proceedings, the government had informed the High Court that it had cancelled Swain's OCI card and he had been barred from entering India over "anti-India activities” and “spreading detrimental propaganda”..In his present plea, Swain has argued that the government has not disclosed the blacklisting order, its content or the legal basis. According to the Swain, the order was neither communicated to him nor was it tested on the "touchstone of procedural safeguards mandated under Section 7D of the Citizenship Act, 1955, Principles of Natural Justice and Constitutional Protections".The Court was told that after the High Court set aside the decision to cancel Swain's OCI card on March 28, 2025, no new action was taken by the government in that regard. As per the plea,"The petitioner is a globally renowned scholar, whose academic and critical writings are cited as the sole basis for the Purported Blacklisting. The impugned action is punitive against lawful, constructive criticism, a constitutionally protected activity for all persons, and especially deserving of protection for scholars."According to the petitioner, as an OCI card holder of Indian origin, he is entitled to protections under Article 12(4) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which prohibits arbitrary deprivation of the right to return to one’s own country. .Advocate Aadil Singh Boparai appeared for Swain. He was assisted by advocates Prakruthi Jain and Abhishek Dubey. .Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.