Since 2020, the measure has been discussed in the House of Representatives; however, it was never passed because of disagreements between political parties over some of its features, particularly the seven-year waiting time for foreign women who marry Nepali men before they may become citizens.
The first Citizenship Amendment Bill for Nepal was approved by the Parliament on Wednesday after more than two years of debate due to the inability of political parties to come to an agreement.
Since 2020, the measure has been discussed in the House of Representatives; however, it was never passed because of disagreements between political parties over some of its features, particularly the seven-year waiting time for foreign women who marry Nepali men before they may become citizens.
Wednesday’s meeting of the lower house of Parliament, or the House of Representatives, saw the introduction of Nepal’s first Citizenship Amendment Bill 2022 by Home Minister Bal Krishna Khand. He explained that the bill had been introduced in parliament to amend the Nepal Citizenship Act 2006 and make provisions for granting citizenship as specified by the Constitution.
“Thousands of people lack citizenship documents despite the fact that their parents are Nepali nationals. They were also denied access to education and other resources due to their lack of citizenship certificates. The Home Minister made a call for new laws to be created in order to foster an environment favorable to the new bill’s approval and progress toward its implementation.
Khand radiated assurance that the new measure would be advanced in the Upper House of Parliament or the National Assembly on Thursday, at which point clause-by-clause discussion would start.
Following opposition CPN-UML legislators’ protests last week, the Nepali government withdrew the Citizenship Bill from the House of Representatives.
