Juvenile adoption

The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 (the Act) consolidates the law relating to juveniles (i.e. children who have not completed 18 years of age), provides for their proper care, protection and treatment, and looks after the best interest of children and their ultimate rehabilitation through various institutes established under the Act.

Rehabilitation and social reintegration of a child begin during the stay of the child in a children’s home or special home (an institution established by a state government, etc) and the rehabilitation and social reintegration of children shall be carried out alternatively by adoption, foster care, sponsorship and sending the child to an after-care organization. This brief note deals with the issue of adoption under the Act.

The primary responsibility for providing care and protection to children shall be that of his family.

It is pertinent to note that adoption under the Act shall be resorted to for the rehabilitation of such children as are orphaned, abandoned, neglected and abused through institutional and non-institutional methods. There have been instances where such children have been quietly adopted by Parsis. They are non-Parsis and their parentage is usually not known. In some cases even the navjote ceremony of such children has been unobtrusively performed. They become Zoroastrians but cannot be said to be Parsis, i.e. Parsi Zoroastrians. A person can only be a Parsi by his birth and not by absorption or conversion.

The relevant provisions of the Act regarding adoption are as follows:

Juvenile Justice Board (the Board) constituted under the Act is empowered to give children in adoption and carry out such investigations as are required for giving children in adoption in accordance with the guidelines issued by the state government from time to time in this regard. The Board is thus the primary authority to be moved for the purpose. Provisions of the guidelines for adoption issued by the Government of Maharashtra and other states need consideration in the matter.

Children’s homes or the state government-run institutions for orphans shall be recognized as adoption agencies both for scrutiny and placement of such children for adoption in accordance with the guidelines issued by the state government. No child shall be offered for adoption until two members of the Child Welfare Committee constituted under the Act declare the child legally free for placement in the case of abandoned child­ren, till the two months’ period for reconsideration by the parent is over in the case of surrendered children and without his consent in the case of a child who can understand and express his consent. The Board may allow a child to be given in adoption to a single parent and to parents to adopt a child of the same sex irrespective of the number of living biological sons and daughters.

Any competent authority (Child Welfare Authority), before which a juvenile is brought may require any parent or guardian having the charge of or control over the juvenile to be present in any proceeding in respect of the juvenile.

The competent authority placing a juvenile under the care of a fit person may make an order requiring the parent or other person liable to maintain the juvenile to contribute to his main­tenance in the prescribed manner according to means. Thus par­ents, etc have to make contribution for maintenance of the juvenile.

Any person in whose charge a juvenile is placed in pursuance of the Act shall have the control over the juvenile as he would have if he were his parent, and shall be responsible for his maintenance, and the juvenile shall continue in his charge for the period stated by the competent authority. Thus the con­trol of the custodian over the juvenile is recognized, notwith­standing that he is claimed by his parents or any other person.

The matter may be examined accordingly, having due regard to the fact whether the child to be adopted is orphaned, abandoned, neglected, surrendered, etc.

The primary object of adoption is to assimilate the position of an adopted child with that of a natural born child to the maximum extent possible. It is considered that the provisions of the Act regarding adoption will not be much useful in achieving the said object.

RUSTOM S. GAE

New Delhi