BENGALURU: Paternal consent for the adoption of a child born out of rape is inconsequential and immaterial, Karnataka high court said while ruling in favour of a teenage sexual assault survivor who had been refused official permission to legally give her baby to a couple, reports Vasantha Kumar.
“When the natural guardians of a child are incapable of providing a loving, safe, and nurturing environment, the child, for all practical purposes, falls within the definition of an ‘orphan’,” Justice Hemant Chandangoudar said.
“Failure to give such a child in adoption would deprive him or her of the right to live with dignity, as guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution. Hence, adoption in such cases is not only a statutory right but also a moral obligation to ensure the overall welfare and development of the child.”
The court directed the sub-registrar of Yelahanka in Bengaluru to register the Nov 11 adoption deed without insisting on consent from the rape-accused biological father for the baby’s adoption.
The 16-year-old survivor, along with her mother and the couple who wanted to adopt her child, had jointly filed a petition when the baby was 51 days old. The authorities said the application was incomplete as the biological father of the child to be adopted wasn’t mentioned as an executing party.
The survivor, a Muslim girl, had become pregnant after being allegedly raped between Nov 1, 2023, and June 20, 2024. Based on her complaint, a case was registered against the accused for offences punishable under sections 4-6 of the Pocso Act and 376, 506, and 34 of the IPC.