Lok Sabha Introduces Bill to Tighten Delayed Birth and Death Registration
On Wednesday, July 29, 2026, the Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Bill, 2026 was introduced in the Lok Sabha by Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai, amid opposition protests demanding the presence of the Prime Minister and Home Minister for a debate on another anti-paper leak bill.
Speaker Om Birla called upon opposition members to oppose the introduction of the bill, but no one spoke, allowing the minister to present it. The bill, cleared by the Union Cabinet on July 20, seeks to amend Section 13(3) of the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969 (as amended in 2023) to impose stricter provisions for delayed registration.
Under the current law, registrations delayed by more than one year require approval from a District Magistrate (DM), Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM), or Executive Magistrate. The proposed amendment introduces a two-tier approval mechanism based on the length of delay.
For delays between one and two years, the process remains largely unchanged, with applicants needing approval from the DM, SDM, or an executive magistrate. However, for delays beyond two years, significantly stricter scrutiny applies—approval will only be granted by a first-class judicial magistrate, shifting authority from the executive to the judiciary.
