the same. As a result, Asad’s application has been pending with NADRA since 2018, indefinitely, under the guise of verification. 3. Further, the Pakistan Citizenship Act 1951, Section 5 states that citizenship can be transferred from a parent. There is no requirement for both parents to have citizenship before a child becomes a citizen of Pakistan. Impact on Asad’s Education 4. NADRA’s failure to issue Asad his CNIC has impacted his education and future goals. Asad has been unable to appear for his public intermediate examinations since a valid CNIC is a prerequisite for eligibility to appear. This has had far reaching consequences as Asad has had difficulty in finding employment since he was not able to complete his education due to his lack of a CNIC. He is also ineligible to apply for a government job, which has been his dream. As a result of this, Asad’s mental health has also suffered. Current Status 5. To date, NADRA has refused and failed to issue Asad his CNIC. He has therefore filed a petition that is pending before the Sindh High Court in order to find a resolution to his matter. Case 4: Safiya 1. Safiya’s (name changed) father had a Manual National Identity Card (MNIC) however both he and Safiya’s mother passed away before NADRA introduced Computerised NICs (CNICs) in 2000. Safiya was not allowed to apply for her CNIC on the basis that none of her family members have one and therefore she has no one to “verify” her, that is, provide a biometric thumb print on her behalf. Safiya has one sister who also does not have an identity card - for the same reason. Safiya was born in Pakistan and is married. Her husband does have a CNIC. Impact on her health 2. Last year in 2021, Safiya suffered from paralysis and is now bedridden. The reason for this paralysis is unknown and she has been unable to be admitted to a tertiary government hospital for any proper tests or treatment since such hospitals require a CNIC for admission purposes. Her sister has consulted with private clinics and doctors in the community however, is unable to afford private medical care for Safiya. Further, such small private clinics do not have the expertise and facilities to diagnose or treat a serious illness such as Safiya’s. Relevant Law & Policy 3. While it is true that NADRA’s policy does include a requirement of biometric verification by a blood relative at the time of applying for a CNIC, there is also an allowance for other witnesses to do this if the applicant does not have any blood relatives to verify them. This allowance was arbitrarily withheld from Safiya. 21