Registration of adoption deed is not mandatory for obtaining a birth certificate under the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act; the authorities cannot impose such a requirement without legal basis.

JUDGMENT :

Biswaroop Chowdhury, J.

This Writ Application is directed against the order/letter dated 24th November, 2023 issued by Registrar of Births and Deaths, Respondent No.2 herein directing the petitioners through their Learned Advocate to submit the adoption deed duly registered before the Sub-Registrar along with Form No.1 and Aadhar copies of Adoptive parents and biological parents for issuance of Birth Certificate with the names of adoptive parents. The petitioners being aggrieved by the order/notice dated 24th November, 2023 marked annexure P-5 to the Writ Petition has come up with the instant writ application. The case of the petitioners may be summed up thus :

1. The petitioner No.1 and 2 are adoptive parents of the ward namely Shanaya Roy and the respondent No.3 and 4 are the natural parents of the said ward. Shanaya Roy at present is residing with the petitioners. The writ petitioners and the respondent No.3 and 4 are all Hindus and they are capable of giving and taking the child in adoption.

2. The petitioner No.1 and 2 being desirous of adopting a child upon coming to know that the respondent No.3 and 4 were blessed with a female child and interested to give adoption the petitioners approached them. Accordingly, on 10th August, 2023 in the morning hours ceremony of giving and taking adoption was duly performed at Radha Krishna Temple, Junglighat, Port Blair which is called as ‘Deethak Vidhi’ in the presence of relatives and friends of both the partner. Thereafter, adoption deed was signed by the writ petitioners and the present respondent No. 3 and 4 on the same day which was notarized by the Notary Public.

3. In order to have necessary incorporation with regard to the names of the petitioner No.1 and 2 in the birth certificate of the ward, an application was filled up by them as adoptive parents. The petitioners requested the department repeatedly to accept the application and to consider it in accordance with law but the department did not pay any heed to the request of the petitioners.

4. The petitioners being aggrieved by the acts of the department in not receiving the application from the petitioners issued a legal notice through their Learned Advocate upon the Registrar of Birth and Death, Atlanta Point, Port Blair enclosing the application of the petitioners for issuance of birth certificate, calling upon the Registrar respondent No.2 herein to dispose the said application in accordance with law.

5. The respondent No.2 by letter dated 24th November, 2023 replied to the legal notice issued by the Learned Advocate for the petitioners and requested the Learned Advocate to the ask the petitioners to submit adoption deed duly registered before the Sub-Registrar along with Form No.1 and Aadhar copies of Adoptive parents and biological parents for issuance of Birth Certificate with the names of adoptive parents.

6. The respondent No.2 relied upon a circular of the Government of India dated 15th May, 2015 where the Government of India observed that adoption deed ie. Document registered under any law signed by both the parties would be sufficient for issuance of birth certificate.

The petitioners being aggrieved by and dissatisfied with the circular dated 15th May, 2015 issued by the respondent No.1 providing registration of adoption deed for Hindus and letter dated 24.11.2023 issued by the respondent No.2 directing the writ petitioners to register the adoption deed has come up with this application under Article 226 of the Constitution of India.

It is the contention of the petitioners that the circular dated 15th May, 2015 whereby the respondent No.1 introduced registration of adoption deed for Hindus and letter dated 24.11.2023 whereby the respondent No.2 asked the writ petitioners to register the adoption deed is bad both in law and facts. It is further contended that the respondent authorities failed to consider that adoption deed is a deed and the same is not compulsorily registrable document and therefore the Authori