DNA test ends 27 years wait as Chattogram man gains father's recognition

A 27-year-long search for identity came to an emotional end in Chattogram after a DNA test confirmed a biological father-son relationship, paving the way for official recognition and inheritance rights through mediation.

The breakthrough was achieved on Sunday (June 8) through the efforts of the Chattogram District Legal Aid Office, which facilitated the reconciliation following months of legal and mediation proceedings.

District Legal Aid Officer Subrata Das said the case stands as a rare and significant example of how legal assistance and mediation can help resolve long-standing family disputes and restore an individual's legal identity and family ties.

According to Legal Aid Office sources, the man was born while his father was working abroad. Shortly after his birth, his parents divorced, and his mother later remarried. Raised by his maternal uncle, he spent most of his life without formal recognition from his biological father.

In 2024, he sought legal assistance and filed an application with the District Legal Aid Office requesting recognition of paternity. The father, however, maintained that he would acknowledge the claimant only if a DNA test conclusively proved the biological relationship.

Following the application, a mediation process was launched under the supervision of the Legal Aid Office. DNA samples from the mother, father and son were collected through two panel lawyers and sent for testing.

A major breakthrough came on Sunday when Chattogram Medical College Hospital submitted the DNA report to the Legal Aid Office. The report confirmed with 99.99 percent certainty that the two individuals share a biological father-son relationship.

As part of the settlement, the father agreed to publicly recognise the man as his son and grant him full inheritance rights. He will also be allowed to reside at his father's home.

The father is expected to formally introduce him as his son before local residents following Friday prayers on June 12.

To mark the successful resolution of the case, the District Legal Aid Office presented commemorative T-shirts to both father and son. Family members expressed gratitude to the Legal Aid Office and the officials involved for helping reunite them and resolve a decades-long dispute.