Acknowledgement of Paternity under Muslim Law
INTRODUCTION Paternity, How Established : The paternity, a relation of child and his father, cannot be established by fact. It can only be established by marriage with the mother of the child. The marriage may be either valid or irregular but it must not be void. Maternity is fact whereas paternity is a presumption. If paternity is established the child is to be legitimate. An illegitimate child has only maternity and no paternity under Sunni Law on the other hand such child has neither paternity nor maternity under Shia Law. Legitimacy : A child to be known as legitimate must be the result of lawful wedlock. Muslim Law insist on the existence of a valid marriage between the begetter and the bearer of the child at the time of its conception. The main point in the case of legitimacy of a child is marriage between its parents. The Privy Council held in the case of Habibur Rahman Chowdhari v Altaf Ali Chowdhari, (1921) 48 IA 44 . A son to be legitimate must be the of