During a hearing on Wednesday regarding a plea challenging the age limit established for couples seeking surrogacy procedures under the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021, the Delhi High Court emphasized the importance of respecting the limits of science, cautioning against pushing them beyond reasonable bounds.

The Division Bench, comprising Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora, raised concerns about their authority to modify the age limits set by the legislature, as these limits are grounded in scientific advice.

The Court issued a notice in response to the plea and requested that the Central and Delhi governments provide their respective responses. The matter has been scheduled for further hearing on May 9, coinciding with the hearing of related cases.

The Court addressed a plea filed by a couple challenging Section 4(iii)c(I) of the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021. This section stipulates that couples intending to pursue surrogacy must be married, with the woman aged between 23- 50 years and the man aged between 26 to 55 years on the day of certification. The petitioners argued that they will soon exceed the upper age limit outlined in the Act, thereby losing the chance to have a child.

The petitioner couple has additionally contended that the upper age limit set by the Surrogacy Act constitutes a violation of Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, alleging that it imposes an unjustifiable and arbitrary constraint. Furthermore, they have challenged the decision made by the State-level medical board, which rejected their application for a certificate of medical indication. The petition has been lodged with the assistance of Advocate Ranjan Kumar and Ratan Kumar Shukla.