SC warns against illegal adoption of C-orphans

The Supreme Court has directed the states and Union Territories to take action against NGOs and individuals indulging in illegal adoptions, taking advantage of many children orphaned to the Covid pandemic and give wide publicity to the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 (JJ Act) in this regard.

A Vacation Bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao and Aniruddha Bose, hearing a suo motu case of children affected by deaths of one or both parents on Monday, also passed directions for immediate relief to them while adjourning further hearing on July 27 after summer vacations end in June.

It shared the concern of additional solicitor general KM Nataraj and Gupta Shobha Gupta about illegal adoptions of affected children and directed stoppage of NGOs collecting funds in their name and inviting interested persons to adopt them. "No adoption of affected children should be permitted contrary to the provisions of JJ Act, 2015," the court held.

Appearing for the organisation "We the Women of India," Gupta sought stringent action against several fake advertisements by so-called NGOs inviting people to adopt the affected children. She affirmed that in any event, no adoption is permissible without involvement of the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA). The top court passed a slew of direction to ensure children, who have been orphaned amid pandemic, get access to basic needs, including continuance of education in government or private schools.

Asaram’s bail plea put off till Friday

Gujarat's self-styled Godman Asaram Bapu (83) alias Ashuman could not get bail for the second day on Tuesday as hearing on his petition was deferred to Friday. He knocked at the Supreme Court's doors after Rajasthan High Court rejected his plea on May 21 for two months' bail to undergo treatment at an Ayurvedic centre near Haridwar.

He was awarded life sentence in 2018 by a Jodhpur court for rape of a 16-year old minor in his Manai Ashram near Jodhpur. on the night of August 15, 2013. The victim girl belongs to Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh and was studying in another ashram of Asaram at Chhindwara in Madhya Pradesh.

A Vacation Bench of Justices Bhushan R Gvai and Krishna Murari told the counsel that it got the response of Rajasthan Government ordered last Friday only in the morning and needs to study it. The Bench fixed the next hearing on Friday, allowing Asaram to file a rejoinder in the meanwhile.