Prime Minister Narendra Modi is off to his next foreign destination this weekend, but his wife (as stated in his election affidavit) Joshodaben is struggling to get her passport application admitted because of lack of necessary documents relating to her marital status.
One of the documents required by the Regional Passport Office is the evidence to her marriage with Narendra Modi.
Ashok Modi, Jashodaben’s brother who runs a small shop at Unjha, and with whom Jashodaben usually resides for most part of the year, told Business Standard, “We are trying to secure a document that would serve as the evidence for her marriage to Narendra Modi. Things have not been smooth sailing for my sister.”
The regional passport office (RPO) in Ahmedabad did not admit her passport application as it was deemed to be incomplete.
“As per rules, when someone claims that she is married and wants to have a passport with the married name, one has to produce a marriage registration certificate (if the marriage was solemnised after 2006) or submit a joint affidavit with the spouse,” Z A Khan, regional passport officer was quoted as saying.
Jashodaben had carried a copy of the election affidavit filed by Narendra Modi in 2014.
The document required is that of a jointly signed affidavit, which she does not possess. When asked if she write to Modi, Ashok Modi helplessly said, “I don’t think she would. I can only help her this far. Beyond this, she has to pick up the cudgel herself.”
In May this year, Jashodaben, had filed a fresh RTI application at the State Information Commission in Gandhinagar Saturday, challenging the Mehsana RTI appellate authority’s 6 February order, which denied her information she had sought under RTI in November, 2104, on her security and privileges as PM’s spouse.
Undeterred by the RTI reply, Jashodaben has re-asserted her legally married name of Jashodaben Narendrabhai Modi.
In November 2014, while seeking details of her security arrangements and her privileges as PM’s spouse, the Mehsana Public Information Officer (PIO) had referred to her as ‘Shrimati Jashodaben, daughter of Chimanlal Modi’.