: It is quite unfortunate and unethical that certain parents are having “two dates of birth” for their daughters. There is one in the birth certificate and another in the school certificate.
AMOFOI has suffered a lot when its love marriage No. 5321, dated 20.03.2013, was challenged in the Orissa High Court.
Mandakini Jena was really of 19+ when she married in AMOFOI to her lover Bunu Behera of SC Kaibart Community of Dhenkanal Town. But her father pleaded in the High Court that she was 17+ by presenting her high school certificate.
“Rs 2 lakh fine was imposed on AMOFOI. We had to go to the Supreme Court to win the case. It took almost 9 years to win the case. The Supreme Court Judgment came in favour of AMOFOI on October 11, 2022,” said Freethought Party of India general secretary and activist B Ramchandra CST Voltaire.
The Orissa High Court should have seen only the birth certificate obtained from the Community Health Centre to know the real age of a girl. But the HC relied on the wrong date of birth (DoB) mentioned in the school certificate.
On 19.12.2023 a young woman of Bada Bazar police station area of Brahmapur came to AMOFOI with her lover for marriage. She presented her school certificate according to which she was 18+ to be with her lover. Her DoB in her Aadhaar card and her school certificate was 17.02.2005. But in her birth certificate, it was 17.02.2006. Thus, she was not age-wise qualified to have her personal life with any young man of her choice. It was yet another case when her parents have documented two dates of birth for their daughter.
The objective behind such keeping two dates of birth of a girl by her parents is quite clear. They want to foil the choice of life partner of their daughter by any means. It is high time such parents should be taken to task according to law, demanded Voltaire.
