Supreme Court wants foolproof rules for adoption

The court was disposing off a PIL by NGO Advait Foundation seeking a moratorium on foreigners adopting Indian children, alleging that many children who are illegally taken away faced post-adoption abuse.

Observing that children required to be protected from abuse and trafficking, the Supreme Court on Monday directed the Centre to frame effective regulations within three months for making inter-country adoptions foolproof and transparent.

This was after the Ministry for Child and Women Development and Central Adoption Research Agency (CARA) told SC that a legal framework for intra and intercountry adoption has been provided in the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 which came into effect from January 15. The rules and regulations are yet to be framed by CARA, the nodal agency for adoption, which also has to issue certain directions to state governments.

"We are told that the new Act is a comprehensive legislation on subjects involving care and protection of children including adoption. So a legislative framework is there but some regulations are required to make it effective. We hope and trust the authorities concerned take speedy steps. Children are to be protected against abuse and trafficking. The beneficial legislation may be made more effective to provide succor to children who may be adopted by framing necessary rules and regulations," said a bench headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur.

"Central government shall expeditiously frame model rules. The centre shall also take up matter with state government. Interest of children is supreme whether it is in-country or intercountry adoption. The mechanism should be effective, transparent and credible," said the bench.

The court was disposing off a PIL by NGO Advait Foundation seeking a moratorium on foreigners adopting Indian children, alleging that many children who are illegally taken away faced post-adoption abuse. The PIL alleged that this was due to the absence of any intercountry adoption guidelines combined with total apathy from CARA. The NGO had told the apex court that while Indian couples wait endlessly, approximately 600 to 800 children are adopted annually by foreigners by paying huge amounts to international agents through whom they fraudulently obtain consent from parents.

On the plea by the NGO's lawyer Kunal Cheema for a CBI probe into a "massive adoption racket operating in the country involving Indian and foreign adoption agencies", the bench said it could be considered if "specific instances were brought to the attention of the court". The hearing in the PIL took a new turn on May 7, 2015 when a bench headed by Justice Ranjan Gogoi barred an Indian-origin Canadian woman from adopting a child after it emerged that her Power of Attorney holder had bribed the then CARA chairman JK Mittal in 2006.