In this state, police will check applicant’s social media ‘behaviour’ before issuing a passport

If you live in Uttarakhand and apply for a passport, the police may check your Facebook history to decide whether you should get one or not.

According to reports, the police have decided to scrutinise social media behaviour before giving their clearance for people applying for passports.

A report by NDTV quoted Uttarakhand DGP Ashok Kumar on Thursday saying that the “online behaviour of passport applicants needs to be scrutinised to stop growing misuse of social media platforms.”

“Uttarakhand Police had decided to make examination of social media behaviour of passport applicants a part of the verification process at a meeting chaired by the Director General of Police,” the report added.

Kumar, according to the report, justified the move and said it was “needed to stop growing misuse of social media platforms to foment trouble”.

He said that he had introduced anything “new or drastic”.

“There is a clause in the passport law not to issue the document to anyone indulging in anti-national activities. I have only spoken in favour of its enforcement,” Kumar according to the report said.

“As a police officer I stand against anything that falls into the category of anti-national activities as defined by our Constitution,” he added.

Replying to a question, he admitted that the way social media was used to “escalate tension” during the recent tractor parade in Delhi may have acted as a catalyst or taking the decision.

“Deterrents like these are necessary to discourage the growing misuse of social media and send a message to users to be more responsible,” he said.