The Centre on Wednesday introduced the Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Bill, 2026 in the Lok Sabha, seeking to make the process for delayed registration of births and deaths more stringent.
The Bill was introduced by Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai after Speaker Om Birla invited opposition members to oppose its introduction. However, no member spoke against it.
The legislation, cleared by the Union Cabinet on July 20, proposes changes to Section 13(3) of the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969, which was amended in 2023.
Under the existing law, registrations delayed by more than one year require approval from the district magistrate (DM), sub-divisional magistrate (SDM), or an executive magistrate before being recorded.
The proposed amendment introduces a two-level approval system based on the period of delay. For registrations delayed between one and two years, the existing approval process will continue.
However, cases where the registration is delayed beyond two years will require an order from a first-class judicial magistrate, transferring the authority from the executive to the judiciary for such applications.
The introduction of the Bill took place amid opposition protests in the Lok Sabha, with opposition members demanding the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah during the debate on the anti-paper leak Bill.
(With inputs from PTI)