There was a recent drive to convert a PIO card to OCI. I'm assuming your friend is actually of Indian origin whose has foreign citizenship. Doesn't matter where he was born. PIO actually has more grounds for cancellation than an OCI. But assuming your friend acquired PIO status due to his Indian origin, they would at least have to give some cause because this is effectively a revocation of his PIO status.
In your enquiries with the behemoth that is the Indian bureaucracy, has any reason been provided? The not giving of a reason is a great reason for going to court. PIO is a status conferred by legislative/executive fiat. Can't be snatched away in an arbitrary manner. As an aside I should mention that a foreign origin person who marries an Indian is entitled to PIO status as well. But they have to surrender their PIO card on divorce. Though there isn't total clarity on this, it appears the same does not apply to OCI. On Mon, 8 Feb 2016 8:48 am Suresh Ramasubramanian <[email protected]> wrote: > Foreign citizen + PIO so there’s a right of abode and many other rights - > except the right to vote among a few other things. > > Family ties to India as well. > > There’s ample scope to file a writ in the local high court. > > Agree with Badri that forking out cash to hire the local 800 lb gorilla > will work. > > > On 08-Feb-2016, at 1:12 AM, Badri Natarajan <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > >> On 8 Feb 2016, at 01:01, Suresh Ramasubramanian <[email protected]> > wrote: > >> > >> Did your friend work for an ngo or was he a journalist? That's getting > very common with this current government and especially given family ties > in india can be challenged in court. > >> > >> Look for the case of priya pillai, a Greenpeace office bearer who was > prevented from leaving for London and had her passport cancelled - the > court passed orders for her passport to be restored and her name removed > from a no fly list > >> > > > > She was, of course, an Indian citizen, which changes the legal position > quite a bit. They have more discretion to mess with foreign citizens. > > > > That said, I agree: get a decent lawyer, go to the local High Court and > file a writ. It’s the best way of cutting through the bureaucratic morass. > No guarantee of eventual success in terms of the guy being allowed back to > India, but you’ll cut through the BS at least. > > > > One tip: it’s worth forking out the cash for a “name” Senior Advocate to > argue your case (which one will depend on which court you file in - your > lawyer will be able to advise you). They are NOT cheap but absolutely worth > every penny in this kind of high-stakes litigation. > > > > > > >
