Senior Supreme Court lawyer Prashant Bhushan Senior Supreme Court lawyer Prashant Bhushan

The Delhi High Court on Friday issued a notice to the central government asking the grounds on which a passport issued to senior Supreme Court lawyer Prashant Bhushan was not being renewed.

Bhushan had moved the Delhi High Court after the Ministry of External Affairs denied a renewal of his passport for an alleged traffic rule violation.

The High Court bench of Justice Rajiv Shakdher asked the government "if someone holds a valid passport but against him some minor traffic violation case is filed, then can you stop subsequent reissue of his passport?"

"Only if a court impounds the passport or puts restrictions on the foreign travel of a person can the passport validity can be restricted," the court noted.

The High Court said it would examine the validity of the notification which requires a person with a pending criminal case pending to first obtain a No Objection Certificate from a court. The rules also state that if the court does not lay down any time period for renewal, then a passport valid for a year can be issued. The court will next hear the case on March 16.

Bhushan, who is a member of the Aam Aadmi Party, is the lawyer of activist Teesta Setalvad, who has been accused by Gujarat Police of embezzling funds meant for a memorial on 2002 Gujarat riots in Ahmedabad. The Supreme Court on Thursday barred the police from arresting Setalvad and her husband Javed Anand in the case.