Delhi High Court: A Bench of G.S. Sistani and Jyoti Singh, JJ. dismissed an appeal filed against the order of the family court whereby the appellant’s application demanding a DNA test of the child born to her wife was rejected.
In his pleadings, the husband had submitted that the wife was not living with him at the relevant time and therefore he could not be the father of the child born to her. This fact was denied by the wife in her written statement. Pertinently, the husband did not lead any evidence to substantiate his pleading that the wife was not in the matrimonial home at the relevant time. Consequently, his demand for conducting a DNA test of the child to ascertain the paternity was rejected.
The High Court did not find any infirmity in the family court’s order. Reference was made to Section 112 of the Evidence Act which says that birth during marriage to be a conclusive proof of legitimacy unless it can be shown that the parties had no access to each-other at the time when the child could have been begotten. But as noted above, the husband did not lead any evidence to substantiate his pleading. The High Court observed: An application seeking DNA test of the child in our view has very strong repercussion on the child and such an order for conducting a DNA test should be passed in very rare cases where very strong reasons are set out and in extreme circumstances when the matter cannot be resolved by leading evidence in the matter.” In such view of the matter, the appeal was dismissed. [CKP v. MP, 2019 SCC OnLine Del 8077, dated 02-04-2019]