Supreme Court appreciated a petitioner for bringing the subject to the notice of the court. Supreme Court appreciated a petitioner for bringing the subject to the notice of the court.

The Supreme Court Wednesday agreed to examine if a person can exercise his choice to be identified by the name of his mother, and not father, in official documents.

A Bench led by Justice H L Dattu appreciated a petitioner for bringing the subject to the notice of the court and observed the time was right to examine if such an option could be given to a person for all relevant purposes.

“This (issues) is towards women rights. This is a good subject and good for the day,” said the Bench while issuing notices to Centre, all states and Union Territories seeking their views on the subject.

The court admitted the petition filed by Madhav Kant Mishra, a journalist-turned-spiritual activist who said the mandatory practice of furnishing the father’s name in all official documents must be made optional since “only a mother’s identity is certain and definite”.

“In our male-dominated culture, a child is always identified by the name of his father in all documents. A father’s name is only on hearsay basis but the identity of a mother is always certain. But there is no law to identify the child with the name of his mother in India,” said the petition.

It stated that it was unfair and “against the basic law of nature” for a mother’s name to be avoided in all respects. “Disregarding the mother while describing the identity of a person is arbitrary, unreasonable and illegal,” the petition said.

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