Indian Law Silent On Giving Child Right To Renounce Adoptive Parents: Amicus Tells Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court has been told that the "emancipation process" which could bestow an adopted child the right to renounce his/her adoptive parents as the legal guardians, could prove to be detrimental to the child in the long run. 

The development arises in the interim report submitted by Advocate Parvathi Menon A., who had been appointed as the Amicus Curiae in a plea moved by the adoptive parents seeking the permission of the Court to annul the adoption of a girl (now a major). 

The petitioners had sought annulment of adoption on the ground that the child was unable to integrate with the family, and was also attacking the adoptive mother. 

Advocate Menon informed the Single Judge Bench of Justice Devan Ramachandran today that the Indian legal scenario is silent on the concept of emancipation of minors from parental authority both antecedent to and subsequent to the attainment of 18 years of age. 

India is alien to the concept of emancipation laws. 

The counsel added that the only manner in which the concept of emancipation could even be remotely invoked under Indian law was by treating the concept as arising under or akin to the right to Autonomy. The counsel however cautioned against invoking the same, stating that it could eventually be detrimental to the child. 

"...emancipation process could bestow the child with a right to renounce her adoptive parents as her legal guardians in any and all legal documents thus also giving up any and all benefits and property rights stemming from her parents. This could be extremely detrimental to the child even if rights of autonomy and agency of individuals in their formative years could be stretched and brought under the purview of fundamental rights even in the absence of explicit provisions or a comprehensive legislation for the process of emancipation in the Indian legal landscape. We will be giving a wrong message to the society. After all the institution of family is a deep rooted social system in India," Advocate Menon says in her report. 

The counsel also drew the attention of the Court to other instances that she came to know of, whereby adoptive parents were seeking to 'dump' their children for various reasons which they would not have otherwise resorted to, in case of their biological children. 

The child in question had been adopted by the adoptive parents from Ludhiana, Punjab, when the latter lost their biological son in a gruesome accident. Alleging that the child failed to integrate in their family, the petitioners initiated proceedings for dissolution of adoption in 2021, as per the Adoption Regulations of 2017, and thereafter, the Adoption Regulations, 2022. 

Advocate Menon submitted that since the child had thence attained majority, neither the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 nor the Adoption Regulations 2022 would apply in the present case. She added that the Adoption Regulations 2017 and 2022 also do not foresee a possibility of annulment of adoption on the adopted child turning a major and therefore does not provide for annulment of the same. 

Taking note of the averments of the Amicus Curiae, Justice Ramachandran requested Advocate Menon to liaise with all agencies including the Women's Commission, to find a workable solution regarding the girl's future, particularly her studies and her livelihood.

The matter has been posted for further consideration on December 15, 2023 (Friday).

The petitioners are represented by Advocate S. Nirmal. 

Case Title: XXX v. Child Welfare Committee 

Case Number: WP(C) 35823/2023