Supreme Court says two‑child penalty laws no longer needed as fertility falls

The Supreme Court on Wednesday declared that laws penalising families with more than two children have lost relevance because India’s fertility rate has fallen sharply. In a 37‑page judgment, a bench led by Justice P.S. Narasimha said the fear of overpopulation that once justified such statutes has crumbled as the total fertility rate dropped from 3.02 to 1.9, below the 2.1 replacement level. The court noted that although the national population is still growing, a sub‑replacement TFR will soon shift the age structure toward an older share of workers and a larger elderly cohort. Data show the proportion of people aged 60 and above rose from about 8.3 % in 2014 to 9.7 % in 2024, and government estimates project nearly 15 % by 2036. Justice Narasimha argued that the earlier view linking high population to development no longer holds and that the focus should shift to encouraging healthy population growth. The judgment revisited the 2003 Javed v. State of Haryana ruling, which had upheld two‑child limits based on China’s early‑2000s experience. It held that continuing such laws would be an abuse of power and would violate Article 21’s right to life by forcing a choice between child‑bearing and political participation. The case arose from a petition by Mangala Bhimrao Ingle, a sarpanch from Kakoda gram panchayat in Maharashtra, whose election was challenged for having a third child. The court allowed her to retain the post while staying further proceedings. ## Context India’s shift to a sub‑replacement fertility rate signals a demographic transition that many developing nations face, prompting a re‑evaluation of policies that once aimed to curb rapid population growth.