Kathmandu. It has been observed that couples from sexual and gender minority communities show fear of the marriage registration authorities. It has been found that local officials who legally register marriages are being threatened and intimidated by those in higher bodies. According to the order of the Supreme Court, it is suspected that the official of the National Identity Card and Registration Department, who issued the circular to register the first marriage in South Asia, has been transferred.
Lamjung’s Dordi rural municipality office was transferred soon after the director general of the department issued the circular for marriage registration. “It has been heard that the transfer took place due to the issuance of the circular, it has been found that the House has inquired,” Sunil Babu Pant, member of the First Constituent Assembly and executive director of Maya’s Identity Nepal, said, “There has been a ghastly strategy of the upper body showing fear, threatening and transferring the lower body.”
After the department’s circular, Maya Gurung and Surendra Pandey legally got the marriage registration certificate citing the Supreme Court order. The department has not issued another letter since then. The office of Badhaiyatal Rural Municipality Ward No. 2 of Bardia has registered the marriage of the first lesbian couple in South Asia by verbal order with the officials of the department. However, it has been found that Deepak Nepali, the secretary of the ward office who issued the marriage registration certificate, was pressured by the higher authorities. The Nepalese who signed the marriage registration certificate were transferred on a 15-day leave. The lesbian couple said that the secretary was transferred to Nepal due to pressure from those who did not like same-sex marriage.
Anjudevi (Dipti) Shrestha said that despite being accepted by the home, family, and society, another couple who applied for marriage registration after them could not get the certificate due to the negative thinking of some government officials. Maya’s Identity, established for the rights and rights of sexual and gender minority communities, during a press conference to welcome Dipti and Supreeta, Nepal’s first lesbian couple to register their marriages, asked for arrangements to be made so that marriages can be registered easily by eliminating the need to ask higher authorities for marriage registration. is
Lesbian couple Dipti and Supreeta said that after Maya and Surendra’s marriage was registered, they were encouraged to register their marriage. After the news that their (Maya and Surendra) marriage was registered, we also got the courage to register,” Dipti said.
Dipti said, “If Maya’s Identity Nepal had not taken the initiative, our marriage would not have been registered.” Maya’s identity Maya Gurung, the president of Nepal, said that they succeeded in registering the marriage on Pant’s initiative. He did not say that he was taking initiatives for the marriage rights of other couples like himself. Maya’s Identity Nepal’s secretary Surendra Pandey demanded the government make a legal arrangement for registering marriages easily instead of issuing circulars repeatedly.
Pant said that the registration department has been asked to issue a circular to make it easy for all couples to register their marriages. Pant said that the department has asked for an opinion from the Ministry of Home Affairs and after the Ministry of Home Affairs gives its opinion, they hope that the department will issue a circular to all couples.
Pant said that he is asking the state agencies to amend the discriminatory laws including marriage rights of the sexual and gender minority communities. Pant said that according to the order given by the Supreme Court on December 6, 2064, the law has not been amended so far.
Pant also informed that he has filed a case in the Supreme Court demanding reservation in the Civil Act and Election Act. “In Article 42 of the Constitution, sexual and gender minorities are left out of all communities,” he said, “even though the Constitution guarantees, we are excluded. This exclusion is not valid.’-Madhav Dulal
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