Avoid DNA test for correcting father’s name in birth record: Kerala HC

Stating that a DNA test should be avoided when deciding a plea to correct a child’s father’s name in birth records, the Kerala High Court has held that children should not have to hang their head in shame if their father’s name had been wrongly entered in the records.

No minor child should suffer merely because he or she was born to unmarried parents, and the name of another person was mistakenly recorded as that of the father in the birth register. The existing law does not permit such a correction without fulfilling certain requirements.

As per a circular issued in this regard, a DNA test report, an agreement attested before a Notary Public and an order from a competent court must be produced, if the father’s name ought to be changed in the birth records.