Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak has said the Nepal Citizenship (Second Amendment) Bill includes a historic provision that recognizes descent through the mother’s name.
Addressing the House of Representatives on Wednesday, Lekhak said the draft bill guarantees citizenship for those whose father’s identity is unknown. “It is a historic departure. One can now be recognized as a descendant through the mother’s name,” he noted.
The bill also proposes issuing juvenile identity cards to minors under 16 years with at least one Nepali parent to facilitate foreign travel.
Lekhak further explained that children born to Nepali mothers will not be deprived of citizenship as guaranteed by the Constitution. Those born to parents holding citizenship by birth would qualify for naturalized citizenship, including children of Nepali women engaged in foreign employment who had previously been left without identity.
