New Delhi:
The Supreme Court today issued a notice to the Centre on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking direction to the government to ban inter-country adoption in the absence of any law regulating it.
A bench headed by Justice Aftab Alam also sought response from the government on holding a comprehensive probe on the alleged ongoing adoption racket in the country.
The court passed the order on a petition filed by an NGO, Advait Foundation, which has alleged that in the absence of a law, the rights of children are being violated and adoption rackets are running in the country.
"The Centre should take suitable steps as required to be taken under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989 and detailed investigation is required to be directed into the scandal of inter-country adoption in India, which runs into thousands of crores," senior advocate Shekhar Naphade and advocate Kunal Cheema, appearing for the NGO submitted.
"Issue a direction to the Centre that in the absence of any comprehensive law, absolute moratorium on inter-country adoption be there until such time the Parliament enacts law on inter-country adoption and amends the Juvenile Justice Act enforced to deal with adoption in consonance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989," the petitioner said.
The court, after hearing the contentions, issued notices to the Centre and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and asked them to file their responses.
"Inter-country adoptions are encouraging miscreants to kidnap small children and/or forge and fabricate relinquishment deeds and other documents to facilitate the process of inter-country adoptions," the petition said.