Three generations of a Dalit family denied citizenship despite court order

The High Court ordered Bishnupur Rural Municipality’s ward office to resolve Laxmi Ram’s citizenship case. Specifically, it said there was no legal basis to withhold the Schedule-7 recommendation after the ward had confirmed his long-term residency and found no issue with citizenship. The order matters because that recommendation is the step still blocking his application.

The case followed years of failed requests. The ward issued a birth and residency recommendation on February 2, 2026. After letters from the District Administration Office, it conducted a field inquiry on April 17 with 28 local residents and forwarded the findings. Yet the ward still did not issue the required Schedule-7 document, leading Laxmi’s son Dilip to file a writ petition.

Since the ruling, ward officials have continued delaying. Dilip says he repeatedly visited the office but cannot afford a contempt case. Ward Chairman Lochan Sahu (Teli) acknowledged the order and said he would begin the process after Dashain, following legal advice.

In Nepal, a citizenship certificate serves as official proof of a person’s legal identity and status as a citizen. It connects an individual to the state’s records and helps establish eligibility for documents, public services, education, employment, and welfare. The article shows that this document is not merely identification; it is a gateway to ordinary civic life.

Laxmi Ram has never obtained a citizenship certificate, even though he has lived in Bishnupur for about 50 years. Because his identity is unresolved, his sons cannot obtain birth certificates, national identity cards, or official marriage registration certificates. His grandchildren also remain without birth registration. The family is therefore shut out of formal systems across generations.

The case shows why citizenship matters most for poor families. Without it, Dilip and Pradeep struggle to find formal work and cannot complete basic registrations. The High Court found no legal basis for withholding the ward’s recommendation, but the family still waits for officials to act.

The family’s statelessness spans three generations and includes twelve people. They are Laxmi Ram, his wife, two sons, two daughters-in-law, and six grandchildren. Laxmi is 60, while his sons Dilip and Pradeep are 33 and 30. The six grandchildren are aged 14, 11, 10, 9, 7, and 2.

Laxmi lacks a citizenship certificate, so his sons cannot obtain birth certificates or national identity cards. They also cannot secure official marriage registration certificates. The six grandchildren have been denied birth registration. Dilip and Pradeep never attended school, partly because poverty and missing legal papers blocked their access.

The missing documents affect the family’s future as well as its present. Three children were sent to school but felt excluded from benefits available to other pupils and later refused to attend. The adults rely on daily wage labour, while the family remains excluded from formal jobs, welfare benefits, and state-provided services.

Missing citizenship and related documents can exclude people from basic systems that record identity and deliver services. In this family’s case, the consequences include lost schooling, limited employment, unregistered marriages, missing birth records, and exclusion from state welfare. These barriers reinforce poverty because people cannot easily prove who they are or complete official procedures.

Dilip and Pradeep never attended school because financial hardship and missing papers stood in the way. Three of their children later attended school but felt hurt when denied benefits received by other children, then refused to continue. The brothers support the household through daily wage labour because lacking legal identification makes city work nearly impossible.

The family also cannot obtain formal marriage registration certificates, national identity cards, or birth certificates for the children. Because Laxmi lacks citizenship, twelve relatives remain stateless and cannot access state-provided services and welfare benefits. The article presents this as a wider problem for poor Dalit families across Nepal’s southern plains.

The ward office is the family’s first local point of contact. It can issue birth and residency recommendations, conduct a local inquiry, and provide the Schedule-7 recommendation required for the citizenship process. In Laxmi’s case, the ward confirmed his residence but withheld the final recommendation, creating the central obstacle.

The rural municipality is the local government setting that includes the ward office, and the family sought help there as well. The District Administration Office, or DAO, handles the district-level citizenship process and sent letters directing the ward to facilitate the case. After those directions failed, Dilip appealed to the courts. The Rajbiraj bench of the Janakpur High Court then reviewed the dispute.

On August 26, 2026, the High Court ordered the ward office to resolve the matter. The ruling said withholding the Schedule-7 recommendation had no legal basis. Officials have still delayed, however. The ward chairman says he is seeking legal advice and will initiate the process after Dashain.

The family’s statelessness began with displacement. More than five decades ago, flooding along the Koshi River forced Laxmi’s father, Ramji Ram, to settle in Bishnupur. The landless Dalit family lived there for about 50 years before expanding and moving near the western Koshi canal. Their long residence did not lead to citizenship.

Poverty made the problem harder to solve. Laxmi’s family lacked money and legal papers, and his sons later borrowed money to file the court case. Dilip says the family repeatedly pleaded with officials and leaders but received no concrete help. The ward and DAO process also stalled when the ward refused to provide the Schedule-7 recommendation.

The article links this experience to wider discrimination against poor Dalits in Nepal’s southern plains. Dilip says nobody cared because the family was poor Dalits. With Laxmi’s identity unresolved, his sons and grandchildren inherited the same administrative barriers, leaving twelve relatives stateless across three generations.

Citizenship and birth registration normally create an official identity record from childhood into adulthood. Birth registration records a child’s existence and family link, while citizenship confirms a person’s legal connection to the state. Together, these records help people prove identity and complete later procedures, including education, employment, marriage registration, and access to public services.

The family’s experience shows how the system can fail when one document is missing. Laxmi’s lack of citizenship has prevented his sons from obtaining birth certificates and national identity cards. Their six children have also been denied birth registration. As a result, family members cannot access the same school benefits, formal jobs, welfare, and official registrations available to people with recognized identities.

The effects accumulate across generations. Dilip and Pradeep rely on daily wage work, and their children have withdrawn from school after feeling excluded. Although the ward confirmed long-term residence and the High Court ordered action, officials have not completed the recommendation. The family therefore remains outside formal state systems.