The Supreme Court on Monday said that the DNA test of a child cannot be ordered routinely in matrimonial disputes involving allegations of infidelity.

“Children have the right not to have their legitimacy questioned frivolously before a Court of Law. This is an essential attribute of the right to privacy. Courts are therefore required to acknowledge that children are not to be regarded like material objects, and be subjected to forensic/DNA testing, particularly when they are not parties to the divorce proceeding,” the apex court said.