Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court has appreciated the action of the Union Ministry of External Affairs and Regional Passport Office Karnataka by providing visa to Ranji cricketer KC Cariappa immediately after police clearance. Cariappa had approached the High Court seeking directions to the Passport Office to get police clearance for the issuance of visa to enable him to travel to England to play cricket.
His travel plans hit a roadblock after a woman filed a criminal complaint against him due to which the police clearance for the visa was withheld. A single member bench headed by Justice M Nagaprasanna while lauding the respondents observed, “This Court would place its appreciation to the Ministry of External Affairs, second respondent, to clear the file before the second respondent, within an unprecedented 60 minutes, as assured by the learned Deputy Solicitor General of India, Sri Shanthi Bhushan H…So thus, the Ministry of External Affairs and the second respondent, all for disposal of a file within 60 minutes. This action of the Union of India deserves emulation.”
During the previous hearing in the case, the lawyer for the central government had assured that the visa would be provided within 60 minutes after the police clearance. According to the court's instructions, the regional passport office has provided visa to Cariappa within 60 minutes of getting clearance from the city police department, the lawyer for the central government informed.
Background of the Case: Recently, a young woman had accused Ranji cricketer KC Cariappa of sexually exploiting her on the pretext of marriage. Later, she filed a complaint in the RT Nagar police station in Bengaluru regarding the case. In the background of this case, KC Cariappa was banned from traveling abroad.
Cariappa, a professional cricketer is rated highly as a mystery spinner with the leg break being his stock delivery.