The women hesitate to pronounce the name of their husband, claimed election commission official Ravi Poudel, with some refusing to do so at any cost. "We have to ask their children and husband to get the details," Poudel said.[break]
"Your date of birth? Many days ago; Place of issue of citizenship certificate? CDO Office; Where (in terms of the name of district)? Where the CDO stays," Poudel quoted the standard conversation with the shy women. "I thought the lady was joking when I first heard the answers. But when I later got similar answers from many of them, I realized the rural women were very shy and were unaware about mundane facts," Poudel said.
Getting the women to remove their veils to get photographed for voter identity card is more taxing as they outright refuse to reveal their faces. Even if they agree for photographs, they ask others apart from the photographer to go away and even then keep their heads bowed. Many agree for photographs only after seeking permission from their husbands. "They refuse to show their face to other men," explained Roshan Adhikari, a District Election Office staffer.
Dashain Chaudhary of Bakuliya attributes the shyness to lack of education.
"Most of the women of the community are illiterate although the younger ones have started to go to school and colleges. These uneducated women feel ashamed to show their face and consider pronouncing the husband´s name a cardinal sin," Chaudhary explained and revealed they don´t even remember their children´s and their own names busy as they are with their domestic chores.
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