Kerala CM writes to Bengal over passport denial to former Telegraph editor

UPDATED: Jun 29, 2026 16:49 IST

Kerala Chief Minister V D Satheesan has written to West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, seeking urgent intervention in the passport renewal case of former The Telegraph editor R Rajagopal, whose application was reportedly held up after an adverse police verification linked to his exclusion from the electoral roll.

In his letter dated June 29, Satheesan said Rajagopal's passport renewal application "has reportedly been held up following an adverse verification report from Kolkata Police".

The chief minister said he understood that the adverse report was based on the deletion of Rajagopal's name from the electoral roll under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR). He added that the electoral issue was already being pursued through the appropriate appeal process, but the police report had delayed the renewal of the passport.

Requesting Adhikari's intervention, Satheesan wrote, "In these circumstances, I would like to request your good self to kindly look into the matter with urgency."

The letter identifies Rajagopal as a resident of Flat 3A, 12 Dover Road, Calcutta, and mentions his passport renewal application file number.

'RENOWNED JOURNALIST'

Satheesan described Rajagopal as "a renowned journalist who has been based in Kolkata for the past three decades".

"He has had a distinguished career in journalism spanning more than three decades, including serving as editor of The Telegraph," the letter says.

The Kerala chief minister also mentioned that Rajagopal is the son of Professor V Ramadas, who served as state secretary of the Gandhi Smarak Nidhi in Kerala and was widely respected for his public service.

Satheesan enclosed Rajagopal's contact details in the letter and appealed to the West Bengal chief minister to ensure the matter is addressed at the earliest.

THAROOR BACKS SATHEESAN'S LETTER

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor backed Satheesan's intervention, saying cases such as Rajagopal's require support from across the political spectrum.

Sharing the chief minister's letter on X, Tharoor wrote, "This is a valuable intervention from one CM to another, which will no doubt get the response that it is a Union government matter and not for the state to handle."

He added, "But the fact is that whenever there is an egregious miscarriage of justice like this one, all democratic Indians must rally together to stand up for the victims, so that a just solution is expedited more quickly."

Tharoor also said the Rajagopal case was not an isolated one.

"Such cases (there have been others involving flagrant failures of common sense on the part of the SIR officials) are increasingly becoming an unnecessary embarrassment to the government," he wrote.

- Ends