Kerala High Court's Ruling on Surrogacy Age Limits


Case Name: Rajitha P.V. v. Union of India

Case no.: WP(C) No. 403 of 2025, High Court of Kerala.

Citation: 2025 KER 11881

Petitioners: Rajitha P.V. and Santhosh M., a married couple seeking surrogacy services.

Respondents: Union of India, State of Kerala, and The Kerala State Assisted Reproductive Technology and Surrogacy Board.

Issue: Whether Rajitha P.V. was eligible for a surrogacy eligibility certificate, given that she had reached 50 years of age. The Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021, stipulates that women must be "between the age of 23 to 50 years" to be eligible.

Petitioners' Argument: They argued that the term "to" in the act meant that a woman remains 50 until the day before her 51st birthday. They cited Section 9 of the General Clauses Act, which deals with the computation of time, to support this view.

Respondents' Argument: They contended that Rajitha had already completed 50 years of age based on her school records, and that the General Clauses Act does not apply to the calculation of age. They argued that a person attains a specific age on the day preceding the anniversary of their birthday.

Court's Analysis:
  • The court noted that Rajitha's school admission register showed her birth date as 21.06.1974, meaning that she had already turned 50.
  • The court clarified that Section 9 of the General Clauses Act pertains to time calculation, not age.
  • The court cited Section 4 of the Indian Majority Act, 1875, which states that the day of birth is included, and that a person is considered to have attained the specified age at the start of their birthday anniversary.
  • The court referenced the Supreme Court's view in Prabhu Dayal Sesma v. State of Rajasthan, which states that a person attains a specified age on the day preceding the anniversary of their birthday.
  • The court emphasized that the terms "between" and "to" in the Surrogacy Act imposed a clear restriction and that a female becomes ineligible on the day preceding her 50th birthday.
Court's Decision: The court dismissed the writ petition, ruling that Rajitha was ineligible for an eligibility certificate as she had already turned 50. The court emphasized that it could not extend the age limits fixed by the legislature.

Key Points:
  • The court interpreted age limits strictly.
  • The General Clauses Act was deemed inapplicable to age calculations.
  • A person attains a specific age on the day preceding their birthday anniversary.
  • The court upheld the legislative intent behind age restrictions in the Surrogacy Act.
  • The school admission register was deemed the relevant document for determining Rajitha's date of birth.

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