The Delhi High Court observed on Friday that every child has the right to use his or her mother’s surname and a father cannot dictate terms. The court was hearing a petition by the father of a minor girl who wanted the authorities to reflect his name as his daughter’s surname in all documents and not otherwise.
‘The father does not own the daughter to dictate that she should use only his surname. If the minor daughter is happy with her surname, what is your problem?’ Justice Rekha Palli noted, adding that the parties’ dispute over this point is ‘unfortunate.’
‘I see no merit in the present writ petition. The apprehension that the LIC [policy] will be dishonoured is wholly misconceived and is an attempt to somehow settle scores with his estranged wife,’ she said while refusing to pass any order.
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During the court hearing, the man’s lawyer claimed that his daughter is a minor who cannot make such decisions on her own and his estranged wife altered his surname.
He argued that because the policy was obtained in the name of the daughter with her father’s surname, the change in name would make it impossible to get insurance claims. The mother had changed the surname from Shrivastava to Saxena.
The court, in rejecting the petition, pointed out that both names will appear on the birth certificate issued by the East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) on August 10, 2018. The judge dismissed the petition but gave the man permission to go to his daughter’s school to show his name as the father.
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