A proposed bill in Nepal, which would give the National Investigation Department (NID) authority to monitor private communications, has met a strong backlash from MPs. Maoist MP Devendra Poudel stated the legislation could have a catastrophic effect on citizens' privacy and that citizens have made sacrifices to give the country a Federal Democratic Republic.

Nepali Congress MP NP Saud said that giving any agency power to monitor and record private conversations, audio visual material, and signals would contravene the constitutional right of a citizen to privacy. Some critics have equated the bill with "Big Brother" type of monitoring, and cautioned that it could encourage authoritarian initiatives.

Parliamentarians also highlighted that if the state has unbridled tendencies to monitor a citizen, it will destruct trust in both government institutions as well as citizens' civil liberties. Members of the opposition party have implored the government to withdraw or re-design the bill to uphold the ideals of democracy and protect citizens fundamental rights, along with the requirement of national security.