The Karnataka High Court has instructed the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and the Secretary of e-governance to devise a method for confirming the identity of deceased individuals using e-KYC methods such as Aadhar. This initiative aims to prevent inaccuracies in the information recorded by hospitals and during the issuance of death certificates.

A single judge bench of Justice Suraj Govindaraj said, “Whenever a death occurs in a hospital the entries made by the hospital are taken to be sacrosanct and the death certificate issued. I am of the considered opinion that the said process can give rise to several anomalies and can be misused.”

“It would be required that even at the stage when initial entry is made, the identity of the person who has expired is established and the necessary documentation is made in a proper way.”

The court, in its directive, emphasized the need for authorities to establish a verification system. It stressed the importance of digitizing birth and death certificates to enable e-verification, facilitating their use in applications like DigiLocker. This step would allow third parties to easily authenticate the certificates before they are presented, ensuring their authenticity.

The court issued these directives following a petition by Sai Lakshmi, who approached the court due to discrepancies discovered in her husband's death certificate. Her husband, the late Lakshmi Kantha S. P., served as a Primary School Assistant Master at the Government school in Bagepalli, Chickballapura District, and passed away on November 22, 2022.

Upon discovering the discrepancies, Sai Lakshmi applied to BBMP requesting necessary corrections. Unfortunately, on January 23, 2023, her request was denied through an endorsement stating that the details were entered by the hospital and BBMP couldn't make corrections without a court order from the jurisdictional Court.

The counsel representing BBMP informed the court about the procedure followed when a death occurs in a hospital. They explained that BBMP doesn't cross-verify entries made by hospitals, presuming them to be accurate.

Regarding Rule 11 of the Karnataka Registration of Birth and Death Rule, 1999, which addresses corrections or cancellations in the register of births and deaths, the court highlighted that according to sub-Rule (1) of Rule 11, if a clerical or formal error is reported to the Registrar, an inquiry is conducted. If it's established that an error occurred, the Registrar is obligated to rectify the error by correcting or canceling the entry, as outlined in Section 15. Additionally, they are required to send an extract of the corrected entry showing the previously identified error to the State Government, Tahsildar, Commissioner, or Chief Officer of the Municipal Corporation/Council.

The court concluded that Rule 11 doesn't necessitate a court order for the Registrar to make corrections. It emphasized that the Registrar possesses ample authority to review documents and rectify errors, incorporating checks and balances within the rule. Once corrections are made, they are forwarded to relevant authorities for their awareness, allowing them to take necessary action in case of any false corrections. Highlighting the significance of birth and death certificates, the court noted their critical civil implications.

A person is legally considered born only with a birth certificate and confirmed dead with a death certificate, which are essential for accessing legal remedies, managing bank accounts, benefiting from government schemes, or making insurance claims. The bench stressed the crucial need for these certificates to be issued accurately, ensuring that citizens can effectively utilize them for various purposes as required. This proper issuance becomes paramount for citizens to leverage these certificates for their intended purposes.

The court then instructed respondents 3 and 4 to review the documents submitted by the petitioners, confirming their authenticity. Following this verification, they were directed to proceed with the essential corrections in the specific death certificate. The court mandated the issuance of a fresh death certificate within a stipulated period of 20 days.

Appearance: Advocate Puneet Kumar A for Petitioner

Case Title: Sai Lakshmi And Chief Registrar of Births and Deaths & Others

Click here to Read/download the Order