Syed Ashwaq Ahmed vs Jt.Secretary & Chief Passport Ofr.& Anr

The Supreme Court dismissed the Special Leave Petition challenging the Karnataka High Court's order which upheld the Ministry of External Affairs' decision to deny the Petitioner, a travel agent since 1997, the right to perform passport work without being a member of the Travel Agents' Association of India (TAAI). The Court noted that the relevant scheme allowed only those travel agents who were recognized before July 1992 to continue their work, and since the Petitioner began operating after this date, he was not entitled to the benefits of the scheme as per the guidelines issued on 18th July 2000. The Court affirmed the High Court's ruling, emphasizing adherence to the established guidelines regarding travel agents' recognition.