The Telangana High Court dismissed a plea filed by farmer M. Venkanna, who sought to direct the authorities to hand over his two-year-old adopted daughter Sharanya, who was in the care of women and child welfare authorities.
Refusing to grant any relief to the petitioner and his wife, Justice T. Madhavi Devi of the HC said the adoption of the child was “not legal and not in accordance with the guidelines of the Central Adoption Resource Authority”. Hence, the same cannot be approved, the judge said in the order.
The judge noted that the couple appeared to have taken good care of the child, but the procedure they adopted in the adoption could not be commended or condoned. The Central Government created CARA to formulate guidelines in relation to child trafficking in the country. The couple got married in 2014 but was not blessed with a child.
On learning that one Nakka Yadagiri had a one-month-old baby girl, they approached him and adopted the girl in May 2023. Almost two years later, a team of Suryapet Rural Police came to the couple’s house and took away their adopted daughter, saying that the girl had been sold to them by Yadagiri, who was the prime accused of child smuggling.
Later, the police named the petitioner and his wife as accused number 18 and 19 in the same case, who were believed to have bought the child from Yadagiri by paying money. Counsel for the petitioner, referring to the direction of the Supreme Court in the case of Dasari Anil Kumar and another vs. Director of Child Welfare Project and another argued that the child should be handed over to the petitioner.
The judge observed that the apex court itself had said that the decision in the Dasari Anil Kumar case could not be considered a precedent in any other case.
Published – 30 Jan 2026 20:51 IST
