The controversial National ID Card issue is once again in the limelight. The Supreme Court has, for the time being, suspended the government's decision to mandate that the public needs this card to access government services. This action has brought big relief to the public at large, at least for the moment, and has given a vicarious thrill to those who, from the very start, argued against the very need for this card. The apex court’s order has come as a breather after being told you need to wear a clown costume to buy groceries!
But let us not get carried away; this is only an interim order by the highest court of the land and hence only temporary relief till a final verdict is reached.
The entire debacle began when the government concluded that the humble Nepali Citizenship Certificate was not good enough. The government seemed to think it was time to upgrade our ID card, as if our wallets needed more plastic!
The government aggressively pushed the National ID Card as a substitute for the Nepali Citizenship Certificate, which already identifies its possessor as a Nepali citizen across the length and breadth of the country. The truth is that there is absolutely sufficient provision within the citizenship card itself to serve as a national ID. The additional information required could have easily been incorporated into the existing citizenship card as well. Why, then, did the government wish for a National ID Card?
The height of ridiculousness in the whole scheme included such things as men were not allowed to wear their Nepali caps, and women were asked to remove the sindoor and tika while taking the National ID card photos. Perhaps the government thought a sterile identification card photo actually represented the real Nepali, rather than our brilliant and colorful traditions! As the Nepali cap, sindoor, tika, and pote (traditional necklace) gained emblematic proportions, widespread protests finally forced the government to recant. The protests against the nullification of Nepali symbols grew extremely vocal, leaving the government no option but to revoke the decision.
How many of us know the fact that the National ID Cards are not being produced by a Nepali company? No, these cards are being printed by a French company which ‘won’ the government tender for the job. As per the plans, the cards are being churned out in India and the USA. It appears that we have outsourced our national identity! Adding to the problem is the overwhelming possibility of information regarding personal affairs being available to foreigners. Whether we are pushing for a National ID Card or only for a very flamboyant anti-national resemblance, the speculation at best can remain!
PM Oli receives national identity card
Another moot question is about the necessity of introducing this new national ID when we already have enough options for identification, such as citizenship cards, driving licenses, passports, and voter IDs. In the truest sense, making a new ID card appears to be more pegged toward securing hefty commissions - mostly illegitimate - than in fulfillment of any real need in the matter.
Did we need the National ID Card to go abroad? No. Our existing passport issued based on the citizenship certificate is still quite sufficient for that. But, now, there is a catch – for some time, the Department of Passports hasn’t been issuing passports solely on the basis of the old citizenship card, asking service-seekers to furnish the National ID Number, if not the card. Although the existing law gives the service-seekers a choice between the Citizenship Certificate and the National ID Number as the required document to receive a passport, DoP officers were turning away people who did not have this number. Now, even after the SC’s interim order, it is not clear if those without a National ID Number will be issued a passport.
The 2015 Constitution of Nepal is the supreme law of the land. But it is interesting to note that it does not recognize the National Identity Card; it recognizes only the Citizenship Certificate. Moreover, the Act implemented to promote the National Identity Card, does not stand as a constitutionally identifiable cause, either. Let me make it clear that I am not a very rigid advocate of this constitution and have wanted some major amendments to it for its real manifestation of the real Nepal through its values, norms, traditions, history, and culture. But what I know is as long as it is the constitution of the soil, it should be upheld. However, it seems as if the government officials are playing the 'who can violate the constitution best?’ game, and this National ID Card serves as their new cheat code!
It seems the government invented a new card, all colorful and enticing, created to help commissions, for who cares about the constitution and the rule of law when there's money to be made?
The government introduced the National Identity Card as an indispensable document for accessing each and every public service or provision, specifying the deadline for obtaining it. It was said that after this, we shall present this card for all purposes pertaining to services of government departments or from the private sector. It is about your social security allowances, your health insurance, your pension rights, matters of taxation, your driving license, your company registration, your banking, your transactions concerning your real estate, even your SIM card. One would get none of these without a National ID card or number.
Therefore, there is no doubt that the Supreme Court’s interim order has come as a big relief. This temporary stay of execution from the Supreme Court has had to function as a beacon of hope, a lifeboat in a sea of red tape. Let us hope and pray that the court shall keep this lifeboat afloat through the final verdict. Meanwhile, let us heave a sigh of relief - that at least for now, we can still breathe without needing a National ID Card!
