$~J * IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI % Judgment Pronounced on: 20.04.2026 + W.P.(C) 16096/2024, CM APPLs.67638/2024 & 20198/2026 GUR KAUR MINOR & ORS. .....Petitioners Through: Ms. Nandita Rao, Sr. Advocate along with Ms. Mrinalini Sen, Ms. Aditi Singh, Mr. Karan Mishra and Mr. Ankur Raghav, Advocates.

versus UNION OF INDIA & ANR. .....Respondents Through: Ms. Arunima Dwivedi, CGSC along with Mr. Akash Pathak, GP, Ms. Swati, Ms. Himanshi Singh and Ms. Monalisa Pradhan, Advocates for R-1 & R-2. CORAM:

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SACHIN DATTA

JUDGMENT

1. The present petition has been filed by the petitioners seeking the following prayers:

“(i) Pass a Writ, Order, or Direction in Mandamus and direct the Respondent No.2 to issue NOC to the Petitioners herein as stipulated in Regulation 67(3) of the Adoption Regulations, 2022; and (ii) Pass a Writ, Order, or Direction in Mandamus and direct Respondent No. 2 provide a copy of the NOC to the Foreign Adoption Agency and change the status of Petitioner No. 1’s Application bearing no.

RCAN201906122785 on the portal; and (iii) Pass a Writ, Order, or Direction in Mandamus and declare the actions of the Respondent No.2 in issuing a Support Letter instead of an NOC as illegal; and (iv) Award the costs of the present Petition in favour of the Petitioner;”

2. The petitioners are aggrieved by the refusal of the Central Adoption Resource Agency (CARA) to issue a No Objection Certificate (NOC) in respect of the relocation application of petitioner no.1, a minor child adopted by petitioner nos. 2 and 3.

3. The factual background of the present matter, as set forth by the petitioners is that petitioner no.2 is an Indian Citizen holding Permanent Resident Status in Canada and is the legally wedded wife of petitioner no. 3, who is a Canadian citizen and an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI)

cardholder.

4. Petitioner no.1 (born on 02.03.2018), was adopted by petitioner nos. 2 and 3 (adoptive parents) in accordance with Sikh customs on 08.09.2019. A passport bearing no. T7410837 was issued in the name of petitioner no.1 on

09.09.2019.

5. On 07.03.2019, the adoptive parents approached Cornerstone Adoption Agency, Canada (the Foreign Adoption Agency) for the purpose of relocating petitioner no.1 to Canada.

6. An Adoption Deed dated 08.02.2021 was executed under the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act, 1956 (HAMA, 1956). Pursuant to the said Adoption Deed, the Office of Civil Surgeon Moga, issued a birth certificate in the name of petitioner no.1 on 12.07.2021, recording petitioner nos. 2 and

3 as adoptive parents.

7. Pursuant thereto, the adoptive parents, for the purpose of relocation of petitioner no.1 to Canada, initiated the procedure as contemplated under Regulation 22B of the of the Adoption (Amendment) Regulations, 2021 (hereinafter “2021 Regulations”). In terms thereof, the District Magistrate, Ferozepur, Punjab, furnished a Verification Report dated 18.04.2022 as per Schedule XXXIII and a Family Background Report as per Schedule XXXIV of the said Regulations. The said reports are enclosed as Annexure-A5 to the present petition.

8. On 22.11.2022, CARA issued a ‘Support Letter’ in the petitioners’

matter. The same is as under:

9. Subsequently, vide e-mail dated 10.10.2023, the Foreign Adoption Agency in Canada communicated to petitioner no.3 that the CARA portal reflected the relocation application of petitioner no.1 as “Application Rejected” with the remark that “The matter cannot be taken up as it is related to HAMA”. The said e-mail dated 10.10.2023 reads as under:

10. The Foreign Adoption Agency further informed the petitioners that in the absence of the requisite NOC from CARA, the petitioners’ application could not be processed.

11. Aggrieved thereby, the petitioners filed an application dated 29.12.2023 under the Right to Information Act, 2005 (RTI Act), seeking information regarding the status of the said relocation application before CARA. The said application filed under the RTI Act was rejected under Sect