KATHMANDU: The Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday vacated an interim order passed on April 8 barring the Home Ministry from distributing citizenship on the basis of descent.

The decision by the apex court has paved ways for providing citizenship certificate to the offspring of Nepali nationals, who have acquired citizenship certificates on the basis of birth, on the basis of descent.

A joint bench of Justices Hari Krishna Karki and Bam Bahadur Shrestha vacated the interim order issued by Justice Purusottam Bhandari.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA) on April 2 had instructed all district administrations to issue citizenship on the basis of descent at a time when the proposal to amend the Citizenship Act is still sub-judice at the Parliament.