Nepal Law Students Notice: Urging Transport Department to Uphold Privacy Rights

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16th May 2024, Kathmandu

“Nepal Law Campus students raise privacy concerns with the Department of Transport Management over the publication of examinees’ citizenship numbers, urging compliance with privacy laws”

Law students from Nepal Law Campus have issued an attention notice to the Department of Transport Management regarding a serious privacy concern.

According to Section 11 of the Privacy Act, 2075, “every person has the right to privacy of personal information related to themselves,” and Section 11(3) states that “no one shall disclose or cause to be disclosed any personal information under subsection (2) held by a public body.”

However, it has come to light that the Department of Transport Management is publishing the citizenship numbers of examinees along with their roll numbers and names in the vehicle driver license examination results of both trial and written test reports.

This practice is in direct violation of both the Privacy Act and the Vehicle Driver License Examination Conduct Guidelines, 2077, which only require the roll number and name of successful candidates to be published. The inclusion of citizenship numbers in the results list constitutes a breach of the privacy that individuals are legally entitled to.

Law students Bivek Chaudhary and Bikash Yadav, who are actively studying at Nepal Law Campus, have raised this issue with the Department. They have formally requested that the Department comply with legal requirements and refrain from publishing citizenship numbers in examination results.

Nepal Law Students Notice

Before moving forward with a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in court, Chaudhary and Yadav felt it was necessary to first bring this issue to the Department’s attention. They have stated that if the Department does not address and rectify this privacy violation, they will seek legal recourse to protect the personal privacy rights of individuals.

This notice highlights the critical importance of adhering to privacy laws and ensuring that personal information is adequately protected. The Department of Transport Management is now under scrutiny to see how it will respond to these concerns and whether it will amend its practices per legal standards.