Single Parent Entitled to Alter Minor Child’s Surname in Birth Certificate to Reflect Maiden Name

The petitioner, Dr. Nabanita Banerjee, married respondent No. 4 (Santu Adhikary) in 2008 and gave birth to a male child on October 19, 2011

Following a decree for divorce by mutual consent in 2015, the child remained in the petitioner’s custody

While the child's Aadhaar card, PAN, school records, and bank accounts reflect the surname "Banerjee," the official birth certificate issued by the Serampore Municipality still records the surname "Adhikary"

The petitioner sought a direction for the Municipality to alter the surname to "Banerjee" to facilitate the child's registration for upcoming Board examinations

During the pendency of the writ, the Municipality passed an interim order expressing no objection in principle but cited pending procedural guidelines

1. Whether a custodial parent has the right to alter the surname of a minor child in the birth register to reflect their own surname

2. Whether the Municipality can be directed to correct birth records under the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969, despite procedural delays or "anomalous" records

Section 15 of the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969, which provides for the correction or cancellation of entries in the register of births and deaths

The case of Akella Lalitha v. Konda Hanumantha Rao (2022), which recognized the rights of a single parent in child-rearing and held that it is not mandatory to retain the biological father's surname

Namita Das v. The State of West Bengal & Ors. (2026) regarding the regularity of such record alterations

The court found that the refusal or delay by the Municipality created an "anomalous situation" that hampered the minor child’s educational advancement

By interacting with the 14-year-old minor in chambers, the court confirmed the practical necessity of the change

The court reasoned that since the biological father (respondent No. 4) explicitly stated he had no objection to the alteration, there was no legal or familial conflict preventing the relief

Applying Akella Lalitha, the court noted that "the society has moved forward" and a single parent possesses the autonomy to determine the child's surname in the child's best interest

The court linked the necessity of the amendment to the need for consistency across all identity documents (Aadhaar, School, PAN) to resolve administrative confusion

This is to be issued as an addendum, whereby both the original and the new certificates are to be read together

The holding is subject to the condition that the minor child, upon attaining majority, shall have the option to exercise his own choice regarding his surname

The writ petition was disposed of with a directive for the Municipality to act upon compliance with requisite formalities