Passports Act, 1967
12. Offences and penalties
(1) Whoever-
(a) contravenes the
provisions of section 3; or
(b) knowingly
furnishes any false information or suppresses any material information with a.
view to obtaining a passport or travel document under this Act or without
lawful authority alters or attempts to alter or causes to alter the entries
made in a passport or travel document; or
(c) fails to produce
for inspection his passport or travel document (whether issued under this Act
or not) when called upon to do so by the prescribed authority; or
(d) knowingly uses a
passport or travel document issued to another person; or
(e) knowingly allows
another person to use a passport or travel document issued to him, shall be
punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 7[two years or with
fine which may extend to five thousand rupees] or with both.
8[(1A) Whoever, not being a citizen of India,-
(a) makes an
application for a passport or obtains a passport by suppressing information
about in nationality, or
(b) holds a forged
passport or any travel document, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a
term which shall not be less than one year but may extend to five years and
with fine which shall not be less than ten thousand rupees but which may extend
to fifty thousand rupees] or with both.
(2) Whoever abets any offence punishable under
9[sub-section (1) or sub-section (1A)] shall, if the act abetted is committed
in consequence of the abetment, be punishable with the punishment provided in
that sub-section for that offence.
(3) Whoever contravenes any condition of a
passport or travel document or any provision of this Act or any rule made
thereunder for which no punishment is provided elsewhere in this Act shall be
punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three months or
with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees or with both.
(4) Whoever, having been convicted of an
offence under this Act, is again convicted of an offence under this Act shall
be punishable with double the penalty provided for the latter offence,