The Punjab government has decided to digitize the nikah registration system in the province by next month. The move is aimed to eliminate fake marriage certificates and discourage registration based on fake witnesses.
Marriage is a sacred contract between two people, and it requires plausible witnesses, which would be possible through the digitization of nikah in the province.
The new marriage registration system will phase out the traditional one and require a table to be filled with all necessary information. The table will be linked with the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) system, which will save the data.
All marriage registrars and registered imams will be given sufficient training regarding the use of modern systems/application.
Each marriage registrar will be allotted a separate account for fee collection. If a person has not paid the fee for the first nikah, then a second marriage will not take place. The fee will then be transferred to the account of the local government from the marriage registrar’s SIM. The ID cards, thumbprints, and witnesses will also be scanned for verification. Only people with verifiable credentials will be accepted as nikah witnesses.
The registrar will also take a photo of the groom at the time of nikkah, which he will submit to Nadra. If the groom is a fugitive or nominated in a criminal case, he will be arrested immediately as the tab will produce the image linked with Nadra’s database.