Pak man living in Godhra draws court ire

Vadodara: A man residing in Godhra who had filed suit challenging his deportation to Pakistan claiming that he was an Indian citizen was slapped with costs of Rs 15,000 by the Godhra principal district judge’s court. The court observed that the suit filed by him was an abuse of the process of law. A lower court had stayed his deportation to Pakistan, but the order was challenged in the sessions court.
Akil Piplodwala had argued that his parents were born in Godhra and he was also married to a woman from Godhra. He further stated that the police were threatening to deport him to Pakistan and hence he filed a suit in the civil court seeking a stay against his deportation.
On the other end, the respondents that included the central government’s ministry of home affairs, state government and the police stated that Piplodwala was a resident of Pakistan who had come to the town in 1991. They said that according to his passport, he was born in Pakistan and stayed in that country till he came to Godhra.
The central and state government and Panchmahal police challenged the civil court’s order in the district court. The district court observed that Piplodwala had submitted photocopies of his birth certificate, and photocopies of two school leaving certificates as evidence. However, the birth certificate did not have his name. The originals of photocopies were not presented to the court and the court observed that he had also not given any reasons for not having done so.
Piplodwala’s marriage certificate produced in the court also mentioned that he and his father were residents of Karachi. The court observed that the documents produced by the government and police were official documents pertaining to his visas and residential permits.
In his deposition too, Piplodwala stated that he had never travelled to Pakistan or come back from there on a Pakistani passport. He even stated to the court that he had not filed any application for citizenship, said government pleader R S Thakore.
Principal district judge J C Doshi stated in his order that the suit had caused loss to the public exchequer as one Pakistan citizen lives in India almost for 40 years without any legal permission and authority. He allowed the appeal and slapped costs on Piplodwala.