Read Time: 06 minutes

Synopsis

A division bench of the Bombay High Court comprising Justice GS Patel and Justice Neela Gokhale recently clarified that it had not stayed the adoption process while hearing a plea challenging the Juvenile Justice Amendment Act 2021.

"We are, however, clarifying that we have not by any of our previous orders stayed the adoption processes in any manner. These will continue as they were being conducted prior to the amendments to the Juvenile Justice Act and Rules that are under challenge in this Writ Petitions. We clarify that there is no question of any ongoing or fresh adoption matters being transferred to the District Magistrate until we decide the Petition. At the cost of repetition, the judicial officers of Courts in question dealing with adoption matters must continue to do so until the final disposal of the Petition on 7th July 2023. Any papers that have been transferred to the District Magistrate will have to be sent back to the Courts in question," the bench clarified. 

The high court was hearing a plea challenging the amendment act of 2021 which gave jurisdiction to the district magistrates on adoption case which was previously under the jurisdiction of civil court.

The division bench of the high court in January 2022, comprising Justice GS Patel and Justice SG Dige had passed an order granting interim relief in an interim application filed in a plea challenging the Juvenile Justice Amendment Act 2021.

The high court had stayed the amendment to the extent of jurisdiction over adoption matters from courts to district magistrates.

The petitioners and the intervenors had challenged the 2021 Amendment which has the effect of transferring all the cases related to adoption including foreign adoptions to the district magistrate from the courts.

The high court had noted that it had been hearing the cases relating to adoption and there was no complaint against it. The court said,

“Until now at least adoptions were with the judges of the High Court and many of us have, while on the Bench, handled these cases. It is not shown to us that there has been any complaint about the handling of these cases. We have yet to see the justification for the amendment. The matter has been pending since October 2022. We are now told that there should be no stay on the implementation of the amendment and that the Government will file its reply,” the court noted.

The high court in its order had also observed that while granting interim relief the interest of the children and the infants along with the adoptive parents has been kept in mind. The high court observed,

“Presently, the adoptions are being handled by Single Judges of this Court. This has continued for a very long period of time and nothing is shown to us to indicate why for a limited period of time of about four weeks this should not be continued until we finally hear the challenge. No prejudice will be caused to any party if the existing system continues."

The high court will now hear the writ petitions on July 7. 

Case Title: Nisha Pradeep Pandya vs Union of India & Ors