ISLAMABAD, March 18: The Muttahida Qaumi Movement has submitted a bill to the National Assembly Secretariat seeking amendment to the Pakistan Citizenship Act 1951, a source told Dawn here on Thursday. According to the source, the bill has been submitted by party MNA Kanwar Khalid Yunus , and it is expected to come up on the agenda on the next private members day.

The bill, to be named as "the Pakistan Citizenship Act 1951 (Act II of 1951) Amendment Bill 2004," suggests that an amendment should be made in the said act under which a man, who is married to a woman citizen of Pakistan, shall be entitled to get citizenship of Pakistan.

The MQM MNA has sought insertion of a new clause "10-A" in the Section 10 of the said act. The proposed clause 10-A states: "A man who has married to a woman citizen of Pakistan shall be entitled to apply for being registered as a citizen of Pakistan after fulfilling the same conditions as are required for a woman under Section 10 of this act."

Talking to Dawn, Mr Yunus confirmed that he had submitted the said bill and it had been moved to remove a kind of discrimination.

The MQM MNA said the Section 10 of the citizenship act provided that a woman who had been married to a citizen of Pakistan may apply and be registered as a citizen of Pakistan.