SC bars publication of citizenship numbers in driving license exam results
The full text of the verdict has not yet been released.
KATHMANDU: The Supreme Court has ruled that personal details, including the citizenship number of candidates, cannot be made public in driving license examination results.
A bench of Justices Dr. Manoj Kumar Sharma and Meghraj Pokharel issued an interim order on Sunday in favor of the petition, stating that publishing a candidate’s citizenship number in written and practical driving license exam results violates the law.
The full text of the verdict has not yet been released.
The petition was filed by law student Vivek Chaudhary, who argued that publishing citizenship numbers in driving license exams violated citizens’ privacy rights.
In his writ, Chaudhary named the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport, the Department of Transport Management, and various transport offices in Bagmati Province as respondents.
Chaudhary claimed that transport offices in locations including Ekantakuna, Thulo Bharyang, Chabahil, and Radheradhe published results showing candidates’ names, roll numbers, and citizenship numbers, thereby violating the right to privacy.
According to Chaudhary, Section 19 of the Privacy of Personal Information Act, 2075 BS guarantees the right to confidentiality of personal information, and Section 2 of the same law defines citizenship numbers as personal data. Despite this, offices have been publishing them, which, he argued, is contrary to the rule of law.
The petition also warned that publicizing sensitive information like citizenship numbers could enable cybercriminals to commit serious offenses such as identity theft, financial fraud, and forgery.
Additionally, Chaudhary noted that Clause 11 of the “Driving License Examination Operating Procedure, 2077 BS” permits the publication of only the candidate’s name and roll number, and does not authorize the release of citizenship numbers.
