In the modern age of great medical and technological advancements, we have created a world where adults’ interests can be satisfied at the click of a button ~ DNA paternity tests ordered online, scandals shared across social media within minutes. In this rush, we ignore the most fundamental question: what about the children and their rights?

Two recent incidents ~ one from an IVF clinic, another from a stadium kiss-cam gone viral ~ may seem unrelated on the surface. But they reveal the same disturbing truth: when adult interests collide with children’s welfare, we try to protect the former and sacrifice the latter. These expose how easily we ignore our most sacred responsibility ~ protecting our children who cannot protect themselves. A disturbing case recently emerged from Hyderabad, where a couple who conceived a child through IVF allegedly subjected their child ~ reportedly unwell ~ to a DNA paternity test. The test, reportedly cond – ucted after suspicions of a fertility clinic mix-up, indicated that the husband was not the biological father. While police have registered a case and laun – ched an investigation into possible medical negligence, the focus so far has been on the clinic.

Advertisement

But what about the rights of the child? This incident raises a critical question that has gone largely unexamined: can a child ~ battling illness ~ be subjected to DNA testing without its consent? The emotional, psychological, and legal ramifications of such an act are far-reaching. India is bound by both do – mestic constitutional guarantees and international conventions that affirm the dignity, identity, and privacy of children. Article 21 of the Constitution gu – arantees every individual the right to life and personal liberty, which has been expansively interpreted to include dignity and privacy.

Advertisement

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), which India ratified in 1992, enshrines the child’s right to preserve identity (Article 8), express views (Article 12), and be protected from arbitrary interference with privacy and family (Article 16). The Supreme Court’s 2023 judgment in Aparna Ajinkya Firodia v. Ajinkya Arun Firodia stressed that DNA testing of children must not be treated as routine. The Court held that “children are not to be treated like material objects and subjected to forensic testing” unless it serves the child’s welfare. In that case, the Court restrained any such testing unless it was judicially mandated in proceedings where the child’s best interest was the central concern.

Today, DNA kits are increasingly being........

© The Statesman