New Delhi:
A couple, who had given their daughter to their relatives in adoption and allegedly took her away later, have to face trial for kidnapping the child, a Delhi court has said.
Additional Sessions Judge Sanjay Bansal said the parents have not denied that they do not have the girl with them and once they have given their daughter in adoption to their relative, they cannot "detain" the child with them.
The court dismissed the revision petition of the couple, residents of east Delhi, challenging the magisterial court's order which had framed charges against them for the offence of kidnapping.
It said there was prima facie sufficient evidence for framing charge against the couple and the revision petition was devoid of merits.
"I am of the view that no error can be found in the impugned order (of magistrate). Merely because complainant witness no. 1 (adoptive grand mother) could not tell the number of the car, her testimony cannot be discarded. She has categorically deposed about the girl child being taken away by the petitioners (parents) in the car of sky blue colour. This was enough to frame charge.
"It is to be noted that the girl child is admittedly in custody of the petitioners since the day of the incident. The petitioners have not denied that they do not have girl child with them. Once petitioners had given the girl child in adoption to the respondent no. 2 (relative), they cannot detain the child with them," the judge said.
The case was initially filed by the child's adoptive father, a resident of Geeta Colony here, who alleged that he had adopted the girl when she was just 28-day-old and the adoption deed was registered in July 2002. He was the maternal uncle of the girl's mother.
He said that he used to take good care of the child and later on, some dispute arose between the two families and he lodged a case against the couple which is still pending.
The man alleged that in May 2008, the couple and some other persons forcibly entered his house to persuade him to withdraw the earlier case and when he refused, they threatened him.
He went to the police station to complain against the couple and when he returned, his mother told him that they had forcibly taken away the child with them in a car, he alleged.
Thereafter, a kidnapping case was lodged against the couple.
The court noted that the evidence on record showed that the girl's place of residence was the house of the man, her adoptive father, and the parents of the child had alleged that he was not taking proper care of the minor which showed that she was the man's adopted daughter.
"Once it was shown that the girl child was adopted daughter of the respondent no. 2 (man), it is he alone who had custody of the said child being his adoptive father. He may or may not be physically present at the place where the offence took place, he will always be deemed to have custody of the child," the court said.