Cuttack: The Orissa High Court has held that compelling an individual to undergo a DNA test would violate their right to personal privacy. The court observed that such a direction cannot be issued in the course of a family property dispute to determine paternity.
A bench headed by Justice Bibhu Prasad Routray dismissed a petition filed by Golap Majhi, who had sought a DNA test of the opposing party in connection with a family property case.
The High Court upheld the earlier decision of the Kuchinda Civil Judge (Senior Division) Court, which had rejected the plea for conducting a DNA test.
According to case records, the dispute dates back to 2018, when a suit was filed in the Kuchinda court over the division of family property.
After the trial court dismissed the plea for a DNA test, the matter was brought before the High Court.
The bench, while hearing the petition, ruled that this was not a fit case for directing a DNA test, reiterating that such orders cannot be used to determine property rights at the cost of an individual’s privacy.
The judgment reinforces the principle that a person’s right to privacy must be respected and cannot be overridden merely for the purpose of substantiating claims in civil disputes.
