Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan did not violate surrogacy laws, says TN govt

Actress Nayanthara and her husband Vignesh Shivan did not violate the surrogacy laws of the country, according to the report submitted by the state government’s inquiry committee on Wednesday. The report also said that the star couple had registered their marriage in 2016 and the surrogate mother is of appropriate age, married and has a child.

Earlier this month, the couple had announced that they had become parents to twin boys.  As they had gotten married in a grand manner in June, their announcement had raised suspicions about the legality of the surrogacy method. Commercial surrogacy was banned in the country in January. Subsequently, the health and family welfare department had formed a three-member committee to inquiry into the issues. 

The committee had not found any wrongdoings on the couple’s part. But it put the blame on the hospital that arranged surrogacy.  The health department has issued a notice to the hospital as it had ill-maintained the health records of the actress which in turn lead to confusion.

The committee had recommended closure of the hospital.The report said, the investigation revealed that the doctor had provided treatment to the couple based on the recommendation of their family doctor in 2020. However, the committee could not inquire the couple’s family doctor directly as he had moved out of the country.

The report further said that the agreement was signed between the surrogate mother and the couple in November 2021 before commercial surrogacy was banned in the country, and the embryo was placed in her uterus in March. The twins were born in October.