KATHMANDU, AUGUST 26

The Supreme Court (SC) has issued an interim order not to enforce immediately the government's decision to make national identity card mandatory for accessing public services and entitlements.

The division bench of Justices Dr Manoj Kumar Sharma and Til Prasad Shrestha issued the order suspending the immediate enforcement of the Ministry of Home Affairs' decision taken on June 24 this year.

It may be noted that advocate Ram Bahadur Raut had registered a writ petition against the government's decision. The Ministry had issued a notice making the card compulsory for people with disabilities, elderly and single women who receive social security allowances from mid-July.