11-month-old illegally adopted child rescued in Madurai

Child Welfare Committee chairperson K. Vijayasarvanan said there was no legal documentation with regard to the adoption

An 11-month-old male child, who was illegally adopted by a couple aged above 50 from Eachampatti village of Chellampatti block in Madurai, was rescued on Friday.

Members of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC), District Child Protection Unit and police personnel enquired with the couple on Friday, and the rescued child was admitted to a special adoption agency in Usilampatti.

CWC chairperson K. Vijayasarvanan said they conducted an inquiry based on a petition received from the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights. “It was found that the male child was born on July 31 last year, to a couple residing in Periyakulam, Theni. As soon as the child was born, it was handed over to this couple in Eachampatti, who are construction workers and do not have any child of their own. However, there is no legal documentation regarding the adoption of the child,” he said.

The biological parents have two other older children -- a girl and a boy.

“The biological parents say they are related to this couple from Eachampatti. The biological parents say they were unable to take care of this child and hence handed over the child to this couple. However, both the families belong to different castes. In addition, there were no legal documents regarding the adoption of the child,” he said.

Mr. Vijayasaravanan said that the biological parents have been asked to come to Madurai district on Tuesday for further inquiries.

“In case people are unable to take care of their children, we request them to handover the children to us. We will ensure that education, food and shelter is provided to the child in need. We are also ready to provide support to the mother through the One Stop Centre,” he added.

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