Kathmandu, March 15

The Parliamentary State Affairs and Good Governance Committee today recommended increased jail term and fine, replacing “or” with “and” in the provision stipulating punishment for citizenship fraud in Nepal Citizenship Bill.

This means anyone found guilty of acquiring citizenship on the basis of illegal documents and false recommendation or verification would face a harsher punishment, including fine and prison term.

During a discussion on the bill, lawmakers concluded that any foreign national who acquired Nepali citizenship by producing fake documents shall be sentenced to imprisonment ranging from five to seven years, along with a fine of three to five lakh rupees.

As per the current provision, anyone found guilty of citizenship fraud is awarded one to five years in jail or a fine ranging from Rs 50,000 to Rs 100, 000, or both.

Lawmakers said that punishment stipulated in the current citizenship act was not enough to deter foreigners from acquiring Nepali citizenship by submitting fake documents.

“If we use ambiguous words, lawyers and judges may take advantage of the legal loophole to award minimum punishment to the offender,” said lawmaker Jhapat Rawal.

However, lawmakers Yasoda Subedi, Rekha Sharma and Nabaraj Silwal expressed their concern, saying there should be room for judges to use their discretion and award punishment depending on the gravity of the case.

Moreover, the panel also recommended one to three years prison term and one to three lakh rupees in fine for the person involved in the process of verifying or recommending citizenship on the basis of fake documents. The existing provision stipulates a jail term of six months to three years or a fine ranging from Rs 20,000 to Rs 50,000, or both for the same crime.

The panel also recommended three to six months prison term and Rs 1,000 to Rs 50,000 in fine for any person founding guilty of altering the details on citizenship certificate. The existing law stipulates up to three months prison term or a fine of Rs 10,000, or both, for the same crime.

Likewise, the lawmakers have recommended prison term ranging from three to six months and a fine of 50,000 to Rs 100,000 for any person who refuses to verify any member of his/her family for citizenship.