A Father has No “Fundamental right” to Collect Preserved Sperm of his Deceased Son Merely on Account of the Parental Relationship: Calcutta HC

On Tuesday, Justice Sabyasachi Bhattacharyya ruled that a father has no "fundamental right" to collect the preserved sperm of his deceased son merely on account of the parental relationship. 

The court said that "The father-son relationship of the petitioner and the deceased does not entail any such right of the petitioner to the progeny of his son. As such, the right espoused by the petitioner for himself is illusory and non-existent” 

The petitioner in the present case wanted to collect the sperm of his deceased son which was preserved during his son's lifetime at a Delhi hospital. His son was a Thalassaemia patient who was married at the time of his death. 

On the question of further usage of the sperm, the hospital staff informed the petitioner that it might be subsequently used to facilitate pregnancy procedure for the wife of the deceased or anyone else. However, prior permission would be sought from the wife of the deceased husband.

Aggrieved by the hospital's clarification, father of the deceased son approached the Calcutta High Court claiming right over the sperm of his deceased son. However, the Calcutta High Court found no merit in his contention.

"As far as the alleged right of the petitioner to collect such preserved sperm of his son, contrary to the arguments advanced by counsel, the petitioner does not have any ‘fundamental right’ to such permission, merely by dint of his father-son relationship with the deceased. The sperm preserved at the St. Stephen Hospital belonged to the deceased and, since the deceased was in a matrimonial relationship with the respondent no. 4 at the juncture of his demise, the only other person, apart from the deceased, having any right to it is his wife, that is, the respondent no. 4," the Court held.