UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — SC balances child’s right to know paternity, father’s right to privacy
Q1. Which one of the following judgments is the leading constitutional authority that declared the right to privacy to be a fundamental right protected under Article 21, and forms the jurisprudential backdrop to the Supreme Court's June 2026 ruling on DNA paternity tests?
- A. K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India (2017)
- B. Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (1978)
- C. ADM Jabalpur v. Shivkant Shukla (1976)
- D. Aparna Ajinkya Firodia v. Ajinkya Arun Firodia (2024)
Q2. With reference to the statutory presumption of legitimacy and the Supreme Court's June 2026 ruling on DNA paternity testing, consider the following statements:
1. Section 116 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 substantively re-codifies Section 112 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872.
2. The presumption of legitimacy extends to a child born within 280 days of the dissolution of a valid marriage, provided the mother remains unmarried.
3. The statutory presumption can be rebutted only by proof of non-access between the spouses at the relevant time.
4. The June 2026 ruling permitting the DNA test was delivered by a five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- Section 116 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 substantively re-codifies Section 112 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872.
- The presumption of legitimacy extends to a child born within 280 days of the dissolution of a valid marriage, provided the mother remains unmarried.
- The statutory presumption can be rebutted only by proof of non-access between the spouses at the relevant time.
- The June 2026 ruling permitting the DNA test was delivered by a five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court.
- A. 1, 2 and 3 only
- B. 1 and 3 only
- C. 2, 3 and 4 only
- D. 1, 2, 3 and 4
Q3. Under Section 116 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (corresponding to Section 112 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872), within how many days of the dissolution of a valid marriage does the conclusive presumption of legitimacy of a child continue to apply, provided the mother remains unmarried?
- A. 180 days
- B. 240 days
- C. 280 days
- D. 365 days
Q4. With reference to the legal framework underlying the Supreme Court's June 2026 decision balancing the child's right to know paternity and the alleged father's right to privacy, consider the following statements:
1. The right to privacy was declared a fundamental right by a nine-judge Bench in K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India (2017).
2. Section 116 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 has replaced Section 112 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 as the source of the presumption of legitimacy.
3. Under the said presumption, the only statutory route of rebuttal is proof of non-access between the spouses at the relevant time.
4. The June 2026 ruling was delivered by a three-judge Bench of the Supreme Court headed by the Chief Justice of India.
Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?
- The right to privacy was declared a fundamental right by a nine-judge Bench in K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India (2017).
- Section 116 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 has replaced Section 112 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 as the source of the presumption of legitimacy.
- Under the said presumption, the only statutory route of rebuttal is proof of non-access between the spouses at the relevant time.
- The June 2026 ruling was delivered by a three-judge Bench of the Supreme Court headed by the Chief Justice of India.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 3 only
- C. 4 only
- D. 2 and 4 only
Q5. Which one of the following enactments currently houses the statutory presumption of legitimacy of a child that the Supreme Court applied in its June 2026 ruling on DNA paternity testing, having replaced the corresponding provision of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872?
- A. Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023
- B. Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023
- C. Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023
- D. Hindu Marriage Act, 1955