THE recent decision by the government to empower the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) to issue succession certificates online within 15 days is a good step. But there are reasons to take the decision with the proverbial pinch of salt.

In normal circumstances, and I am a witness to it, the succession certificate can be obtained within 15 days to two months from civil courts.

It is, therefore, a misstatement that it takes two to seven years for its issuance. It is only when a dispute arises between the legal heirs that the cases prolong in the courts.

Will Nadra circumvent the period in such cases? Will it engage legal experts to adjudicate the dispute within 15 days?

It is also not known whether it will take 15 days for the complete process, or 15 days from the submission of the desired documents. My experience with Nadra is not very good as far as submissions of documents are concerned.

Early last year, I went to Nadra office in Islamabad’s Blue Area along with my sister, who is a senior citizen and now settled abroad, to obtain a Family Registration Certificate (FRC). When we got the certificate, there was a discrepancy in my late father’s name against my sister’s name.

To rectify the same, she was asked to bring her matriculation certificate, which incidentally was misplaced over a period of time, as she had sat the examinations 65 years ago.

In lieu of that, she offered her MBBS degree certificate with our father’s name, but it was not acceptable to Nadra, as only matriculation certificate is a legal document, according to Nadra. The name has not been rectified to date.

So one can well visualise the competence and the bureaucratic snags one can get involved in while submitting documents to Nadra.

The banks already have a system in practice where disbursement of up to Rs100,000 at local and Rs500,000 at head office level can be authorised for payment from the account of a deceased against indemnity in the absence of a succession certificate.

The whole process hardly takes 10 to 30 days. So what extra value is Nadra going to add to the system that is already working smoothly?

Lastly, it is so paradoxical that the succession certificate, which was not a requirement, has been made mandatory in National Savings Scheme (NSS) now. Prior to this, the nominated person could easily have access to the funds left by the deceased.

Why this change now and that too with retrospective effect? It is only causing inconvenience to the senior citizens due to no fault of theirs.

A Senior Citizen

Islamabad

Published in Dawn, February 10th, 2021