The Lahore High Court (LHC) has ruled that a biological father is obligated to maintain a child born out of wedlock or as a result of sexual assault.
“The person, having begotten the child, is bound to provide for its maintenance,” ruled Justice Ahmad Nadeem Arshad in a detailed judgement issued on a petition filed by a man challenging a family court’s decree.
In 2020, a woman had accused the man of raping her, resulting in the birth of her daughter, who is now 4 years old. In a petition filed on behalf of the minor, she had sought maintenance allowance from the petitioner. The man had contested the suit, claiming the minor was not his daughter and challenging the rape allegation.
However, a family court had ruled in favor of the woman in 2022, fixing an interim maintenance allowance of Rs. 3,000/month for the minor. The alleged father had then challenged the ruling in the LHC.
The judgment observes that the case becomes complicated because the alleged father was refusing to acknowledge his paternity. Stressing that a “legitimate child” is different from a “biological child,” the judge observed that the defendant could only be legally obligated to provide maintenance once his paternity was established.
The ruling states the family court erred in law by granting maintenance for the child without first ensuring that the child is indeed the biological offspring of the petitioner. “In cases where paternity is disputed, it is essential for the court to first establish, beyond a reasonable doubt, the biological relationship between the child and the defendant,” read the judgment, adding in the absence of such evidence, the family court’s decision to grant maintenance failed to determine legal responsibility.
“This failure undermines the principles of fairness and due process in family law proceedings,” he ruled, adding that equity, fair play and justice demands that the defendant must compensate and maintain the minor if she is proven his biological child. “The biological father is also morally under obligation to maintain his illegitimate child,” the judge added.
The judgment has remanded the matter back to the family court with a direction to record evidence proving the petitioner is the biological father of the minor. If the court determines the minor is indeed the biological child of the petitioner, the proceedings may continue for the determination of the maintenance allowance. The ruling emphasized that in such cases, the burden of proving paternity lies on the mother.
“In the case where a woman claims maintenance for her child against the defendant/biological father, who denies the version, the woman would first need to establish, through trustworthy evidence, that the defendant is indeed the biological father of the child,” read the ruling. “The burden of proving that the defendant is the biological father of the child lies on the woman who claims the maintenance,” it added.