Goa, Sept. 3 -- The Bombay High Court at Goa has dismissed a writ petition challenging the cancellation of a disputed birth registration, ruling that a birth registered more than one year after the date of occurrence can be authorised only by a Judicial Magistrate of the First Class.

Justice Valmiki Menezes upheld the December 13, 2023 order of the Corporation of the City of Panaji, which had cancelled the disputed 1999 birth registration of Savio Jose Xavier Viegas.

The Court noted that under Section 13(3) of the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969, delayed registration of a birth beyond one year requires an order from a Judicial Magistrate of the First Class. The Court held that an order issued by an Executive Magistrate or Ma...