'We are not like Western countries': SC turns down unmarried woman's plea for surrogacy

The Supreme Court (SC) refused a plea of a 44-year-old unmarried woman to become a mother through surrogacy, India Today reported on Tuesday. It said the institution of marriage must be preserved in the country, and it cannot follow the model of Western countries where children are born outside of marriage.

"It is a norm here to become a mother within the institution of marriage. Being a mother outside the institution of marriage is not the norm. We are concerned about it. We are speaking from the point of view of a child's welfare," said a bench of Justices BV Nagarthana and Augustine George Masih. 

"Should the institution of marriage survive or not in the country? We are not like Western countries. The institution of marriage has to be protected. You can call us and tag us conservative, and we accept it," the court observed, adding that a single woman bearing a child outside marriage was the exception rather than the rule in Indian society.

As per India's Surrogacy Regulation Act, women who are widowed or divorced and between the ages of 35 and 45 years can go for surrogacy. A single unmarried woman can not become a mother through surrogacy. The woman, who works for a multinational corporation, had challenged the validity of some provisions of the act in the apex court.

However, the bench rejected the plea, saying it was difficult to rear and bring up a surrogate child at the advanced age of 44. "You cannot have everything in life. Your client preferred to remain single. We are also concerned about society and the institution of marriage." 

The court further said that the country was not like the West where many children did not know about their mothers and fathers. "We do not want children roaming here without knowing about their fathers and mothers," the bench said, adding that "science has well advanced but not the social norms, and that is for some good reason".

(With inputs from Kanu Sarda)