New Delhi, Aug. 4 -- Parliament on Tuesday passed a Bill that seeks to tighten regulations for delayed registration of births and deaths and makes it mandatory to get approval from a judicial magistrate (first class) for cases reported more than two years after the event.

'The Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Bill, 2026' was approved by the Rajya Sabha by a voice vote amid continuous sloganeering by Opposition members, who repeatedly demanded the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah in the House. The opposition members also raised slogans on the alleged theft of donations at Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

The Lok Sabha has already passed the Bill on Friday amid din.

The Bill seeks to amend provisions of the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969 to tighten the existing norms, mandating an order from a judicial magistrate (first class) for birth and death registrations made more than two years after the event.

Under the existing law, registrations delayed by more than one year require an order from a district magistrate, sub-divisional magistrate, or an authorised executive magistrate, and the provision will continue to apply for delays of up to two years under the amended law.

Replying to the debate amid continued slogan-shouting by Opposition members , Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said the Modi government was committed to ensuring that every child born in the country was registered and that every death was recorded so that deceased persons did not continue as "ghost voters" benefiting parties pursuing "appeasement politics".

"The government wants that every child born in the country should be registered and every death should also be registered." Rai said the opposition members need to understand the provisions of the bill.

"The country wants that anyone born in the country, it is important that he or she is registered. Anyone who has died, cannot continue to remain in the voter lists to benefit some parties," he said.

Taking a swipe at the Congress, he said, in some states, there are governments who welcome such people to remain in voter lists. "This will not happen any more," he asserted.

"In 2014, the total number of births registered in the country was 86.6 per cent. In 2024, it rose to 99.1 per cent. For deaths, in 2014, 72.5 per cent deaths were registered, while now it is 99.4 per cent."

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.