The Supreme Court said in an important judgment on Tuesday (January 28) that the child born during a valid marriage would be considered a valid child of parents who were together at the time of conception. The court said that when a woman and man are married and they are in contact with each other, then the man will be considered the legal father of a woman born to the woman, even if he claims that the child was born to another man Is.
A bench of Justice Suryakant and Justice Ujjal Bhuiyan said that such a validity has been envisaged in Section 112 of the Evidence of India Act. A person who claims illegality will have to prove that there is no access to each other between husband and wife (in relation to not having a relationship). The court admitted that validity and paternity are connected to each other, as the legitimacy of the child directly establishes paternity.
The court says that when evidence is present to accept validity Court paternity The DNA cannot order testing to determine, as it would violate the confidentiality of the person (who is allegedly lover), which the wife has allegedly described as the father of her son. The court said that forcing the alleged lover to such a DNA testing would be a violation of his privacy and dignity.
The court said, “Forcibly conducting DNA tests can affect the person’s personal life. When the matter is of infidelity, its effect will be more unfavorable. This can affect the mental health of the person as well as his social and professional life. For this reason, he has some right to protect his dignity and privacy, including refusal to conduct DNA testing. ”
Actually, this case is related to a couple from Kerala. The matter reached the Supreme Court via various courts. The appeal in the Supreme Court was filed by the person who was accused of being the father of the child. The child’s mother claimed that the appellant gave birth to the child when she was married to another person.
When the child was born in the year 2001, then the woman Marriage someone Was done by another person. The child’s mother claimed that the child belonged to the appellant. She later divorced her husband in 2006 and contacted the Cochin Municipal Corporation and requested to register the name of the appellant as the child’s father. She argued that she was in illicit relations with the appellant. However, the authorities refused.
The woman then filed a case in the Munsif court in 2007 and demanded to declare that the appellant was the real father of the child. This petition was dismissed by the Munsif Court. After this the woman reached Kerala High Court. In 2011, the Kerala High Court also dismissed this petition. Both courts said that there was a valid marriage between the woman and her husband at the relevant time.
Both courts also refused to order DNA testing. After this, in the year 2015, the son turned to the family court claiming the maintenance of the appellant. It claimed that he is his biological father. The Family Court ruled that the Munsif court does not have the right to consider the earlier trial and will not order the family court.
The family court further stated that the application for maintenance is not about validity, but about paternity. Therefore, the Munsif court and the earlier order of the Kerala High Court will not prevent the family court from determining paternity through DNA tests. The Kerala High Court upheld the decision of the Family Court.
The Kerala High Court said that the child has the right to get maintenance from his biological father. As a result, the person has filed an appeal in the Supreme Court, who is allegedly accused of being the father of the child. The court quashed the order of the Family Court. The court also assumed that the defendant is considered the valid son of his mother’s ex -husband.
