The Central Government has opposed bringing same sex couples living in live-in relationships under the purview of the Surrogacy Act. In the reply filed in the Supreme Court, the government has said that allowing surrogacy to such couples will encourage misuse of this act. Along with this, there will be apprehension regarding the bright future of the child born through a surrogate womb.
The court had issued notice to the central government on 23 January. The court had directed the petitioner to provide a copy of the petition to the office of ASG Aishwarya Bhati. In fact, an unmarried woman has filed a petition challenging the provision of the Surrogacy Act, 2021, which excludes unmarried women from the definition of ‘intending woman’. Due to this, the petitioners lose the option of progeny through surrogacy.
The petition states that the eligible women under this law include Indian women who are widowed or divorced between the ages of 35 and 45 and who intend to avail surrogacy. Apart from this, the woman should be genetically related to the couple seeking a child through surrogacy. With all these conditions, it is quite a difficult task to find a woman for surrogacy. The petition states that the provisions of both the laws violate Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution.
