Man claims son not mine, wife ‘adulterous’, court says too late for DNA test, child 24 now

4 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Jul 2, 2026 12:16 PM IST

The Jharkhand High Court observed that the parent neither had any right to give consent to a DNA test of the adult child nor had any means to enforce such an order of a DNA test. (AI-generated image)

A man who had accused his wife of adultery and had sought a DNA test on their child has been told by the Jharkhand High Court that the son, now 24, can’t be forced to take such a test.

Justice Anubha Rawat Choudhary dismissed the man’s plea challenging a trial court order that had earlier rejected his request for a DNA test of the child in a pending divorce case based on allegations of adultery. The child’s legitimacy cannot be doubted merely based on probabilities or suspicions, the judge noted.

“Now the child has attained the age of about 24 years and the child who has now become an adult cannot be forced to be subjected to DNA test,” the order dated June 29 read. The court also said no adverse inference can be drawn against the mother if the child refuses a DNA test.

The man claimed that after his marriage in 2000, he left for Surat in 2001 for work and returned only in May 2002, when he allegedly found his wife in an advanced stage of pregnancy. According to him, a village panchayat was convened where the wife and her parents admitted her alleged adulterous relationship. The child was born in 2002.

He filed for divorce in 2008 and, based on the statements of four witnesses, moved an application in 2010 seeking a DNA test of the child to establish his allegation of adultery. The trial court rejected the plea.

Justice Anubha Rawat Choudhary said that in case of a minor, the consent for getting a DNA test could be obtained from the natural guardian.

The trial court said the child, though an adult now, was not made a party to the case and that the husband had failed to substantiate his claim about not being with his wife when she conceived. The man then challenged the order before the high court.

He argued that in a divorce petition based on adultery, the child was not a necessary party and relied on judicial precedents allowing DNA tests. His petition was also challenged by his wife, who argued that he had never cited “non-access” to her in his divorce petition.

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Can’t compel an adult: HC

The high court noted that during the proceedings before the trial court, the child was a minor but is now an adult. In case of a minor, the consent for a DNA test is given by the natural guardian.

However, the child is now about 24 years and cannot be compelled to take a DNA test. The trial court had rightly rejected the plea for DNA test.

The court also observed that the mother, having lost the right to represent the child as the guardian, neither had any right to consent to a DNA test of the child nor had any means to enforce such an order if passed.

The trial court rightly said “access” means an opportunity for sex, and the petitioner couldn’t prove he didn’t have one.

Plea dismissed

The court, therefore, dismissed the plea, while also noting that despite the child turning into an adult, the husband had not taken steps to implead him as a party. It added that the child’s legitimacy cannot be doubted merely based on probabilities or suspicions.

Ashish Shaji is a Senior Sub-Editor at The Indian Express, where he specializes in legal journalism. Combining a formal education in law with years of editorial experience, Ashish provides authoritative coverage and nuanced analysis of court developments and landmark judicial decisions for a national audience.

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Tags:

adultery law

divorce case

DNA test

Jharkhand High Court