SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court has sought a response from the authorities on a petition filed by National Conference MLA Hilal Akbar Lone, who has approached the court over the delay in issuance of his passport despite having applied for it.
Lone, who represents the Sonawari Assembly constituency in the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, filed the petition before the Srinagar wing of the High Court, challenging the delay in issuance of the passport.
The 2024 Assembly election records show that Lone was elected from Sonawari on a National Conference ticket. He secured 31,535 votes in the election and is currently serving as the constituency’s MLA.
The matter came up before Justice Rahul Bharti on August 18, 2026. The court order records that the petitioner was aggrieved by the delay in issuance of his passport despite having applied for it.
Taking up the plea, the court issued notice to the respondents. Counsel appearing for the Union of India waived notice on behalf of respondents 1 and 2, while counsel representing respondents 3 and 4 also waived notice on their behalf.
The court directed the respondents to file their response to the writ petition within three weeks.
The matter has been listed for further hearing on September 15, 2026.
The petition has been registered as WP(C) No. 2018/2026, along with CM No. 5465/2026. Lone is represented by advocate Shuja Ul Haq.
The respondents include the Union of India and other authorities. The Union of India was represented by advocate Shagufta Maqbool, appearing in place of Deputy Solicitor General of India T M Shamsi, while the other respondents were represented by assisting counsel Rahila Khan, appearing in place of Senior Additional Advocate General Mohsin Qadri.
The August 18 order does not disclose the specific reasons for the delay in issuance of Lone’s passport, the date on which he submitted his application or the nature of any verification pending before the authorities.
The court, at this stage, has only sought the respondents’ response and has not recorded any finding against the authorities on the merits of the petition.
