Reports have been circulating rapidly on social media about the abolition of Pakistan’s traditional marriage registration system, suggesting it will be replaced with a new digital method using tablet devices.
According to these reports, marriage registrars would create accounts on the tablets, collect registration fees, and use biometric verification to authenticate the identity cards and thumbprints of marriage witnesses.
Furthermore, the reports claim that the groom’s photograph would be taken by the officiating cleric during the registration process. The system would allegedly connect to the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), enabling the immediate arrest of any groom who is a fugitive, wanted in a case, or a tax evader.
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Umar Saeed, Deputy Director of NADRA, has responded to these reports. He stated that he had no knowledge of any such system being implemented. He explained that the operational details and implementation of the system would fall under the jurisdiction of provincial governments, and NADRA’s role would be limited to verifying identity cards and developing the necessary software.
“No provincial government has discussed this matter with NADRA yet,” Saeed clarified. “If such a system were in place, the provincial governments would have certainly consulted with NADRA. Therefore, we currently have no information regarding this issue.”
