Mumbai News: HC Directs NMMC To Issue Birth Certificate To Boy With Name Of Biological Father

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has directed Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) to immediately issue a birth certificate to a three-year-old with the name of his biological father.

A division bench of Justices Gautam Patel and Kamal Khata also rapped the corporation for saying that there was no provision in law to change the details in birth certificate.

HC first heard petition of religious conversion

The HC was hearing a petition by a mother (M), who converted from Islam to Hindu in 2017, before marriage. She and P lived together they till June 2018. Due to differences between the couple, they divorced by mutual consent in February 2021. However, after they separated and until the divorce decree was passed, she had a relationship with B. She conceived and their child was born in July 2020.

Despite differences, it was P who had admitted her to hospital for delivery. In the resultant situation of stress, P entered his name with admission forms and this was reflected in the boy’s birth certificate.

Mother made application before NMMC to change father's name

When M saw the birth certificate, she made an application before the NMMC to change the name of the father, to reflect B’sstatus as the biological father. However, the civic body contended that there was no provision to change the name of the father. Her plea for the same was also rejected by magistrate at Belapur on April 29.

Mother’s advocate Uday Warunjikar pointed out the Supreme Court judgment in ABC versus State (NCT of Delhi) that whenever a single parent or unwed mother applies for a birth certificate the only requirement should be that she should furnish an affidavit to that effect. The corrected birth certificate must then be issued. Warunjikar also referred to a Bombay HC judgment in ABC vs State.

The judges noted: “We confess we are unable to understand the approach of the municipal corporation and, for that matter, that of the JMFC (judicial magistrate first class).” The bench added it was a binding law declared by the apex court and the high court and the NMMC was not at liberty to say “there is no law”.

Warunjikar submitted an affidavit from B in which he stated that he was the biological father of the boy and supported the plea of the mother.

HC directs mother to submit all previous birth certificates

Allowing the mother’s petition, the HC directed her to surrender all the previous birth certificates to NMMC before the fresh certificate is issued.

“The Municipal Corporation… will not refuse to act only because in this order we have masked the names,” the court emphasised.