Adoption fuelled by hate? Kerala court steps in after mother’s plea
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A family court in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday stayed the August 2021 adoption of a child after the state government opposed it amid allegations by the daughter of a communist leader that her parents put up her newborn for adoption because they disapproved of her relationship to a Dalit, who is the father of the child.
Former student activist Anupama S Chandran, daughter of PS Jayachandran, a leader of the ruling Communist Party of India (Marxist), or CPI (M), in Kerala, sat on a fast outside the state secretariat, seeking the return of her baby. She demanded action against those who allegedly kidnapped her newborn.
Chandran alleged in a police complaint filed last week that her father took away and handed over the baby soon after its birth last October, to a Kerala State Council for Child Welfarerun orphanage in the state capital.
The baby was reportedly given to a family from Andhra Pradesh in a hurry, flouting adoption rules, she further claimed.
Jayachandran has claimed that he sent the baby to the government-run children’s home in Thiruvananthapuram with his daughter’s consent. Chandran signed on a stamp paper to that effect, he said, but she has said she did so under duress.
The court ordered a DNA test and asked the state child welfare committee to furnish details on whether the baby was abandoned or admitted to a children’s home by someone.
“There are enough ambiguities in the records. Was the child abandoned or received from its guardians?” the court asked.
It directed the committee to explain the issues when it hears the matter next on November 1. The court asked the police to submit an action taken report and other details of the case in a sealed cover. The baby will remain with the family in Andhra till then. Chandran welcomed the court’s order. “I am happy my six-month-long fight for my baby evoked some results for the first time. I have immense faith in the judiciary,” she said. Even after getting her child back, she will continue her fight against her tormentors and government agencies, who failed her, she said.
There are still may hurdles Chandran may have to cross even after the DNA test, legal experts said. The foster parents or the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) can appeal against the family court’s decision in a higher court. CARA is the nodal agency for all adoption-related issues in India.
“As per the law, adoption without the consent of the biological mother is not permitted. Here, the alleged consent is claimed to be obtained by fraud, force or coercion. Any objections in this regard are weak before the mother’s claim,” said Supreme Court lawyer MR Abhilash.