Correcting an entry in the birth register: the statute, the rule and the Registrar

Background

The Kerala High Court has asked the legislature to reconsider the requirements of a DNA test report, an agreement attested before a Notary Public, or an order of a competent court when the father's name in a birth record is to be corrected in cases where paternity is undisputed. Correction of an entry in the birth register is governed by Section 15 of the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969 and Rule 11 of the Rules of 1999, and the Court found that those provisions do not permit a correction of this kind, the requirement of a DNA test report, a notarised agreement and a court order having been laid down by a circular issued in the matter. The register itself is kept by the Registrar of Births and Deaths, an officer of the local body. The Court invoked the doctrine of parens patriae, under which a court can act as the guardian and protector of minors and a constitutional court should step in where such children face injustice. Finding that paternity was not in dispute, the Court ordered the Registrar of Births and Deaths to correct the father's name in the register and to issue a fresh birth certificate. The Court also suggested that the parens patriae jurisdiction of the courts be taught at the school level so that children know that courts too are there to protect their interests.