'Can't send back adopted girl to Punjab, Govt should explain'; Kerala HC on Ludhiana adoption conundrum

KOCHI: The High Court didn’t accept the request made by a couple to abandon their adopted daughter after the latter failed to acclimatize with them. The court then asked the government to apprise about plans to protect the orphan girl child after her foster parents backed out.

Justice Devan Ramachandran's order came on a petition filed by a couple from Thiruvananthapuram seeking permission to send back the girl they adopted from the Nishkam Sevashram in Ludhiana. The High Court said that the service of one empathetic person is needed to talk to the girl and resolve the issues. Adv. Parvathy Menon was appointed as amicus curiae. The case will be considered again on Monday.

The petitioners adopted the 13-year-old girl on February 16, 2018, to overcome the grief of her son's death in a car accident. However, the girl was ill at ease with the couple and sometimes turned ferocious, failing to match their expectation of an ideal daughter. She was later placed under the care of the Child Welfare Committee.

An appeal was made to the Thiruvananthapuram collector to send the child back to Punjab, but it didn’t materialize. The couple had to reach the High Court after the Nishkam Sevashram in Ludhiana showed unwillingness to take back the girl child. Work needs to be done through the Child Welfare Committee to cancel the adoption and protect the child.