The Delhi High Court has instructed the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) to promptly issue a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to an Australian couple who adopted a child in 2020 under the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act (HAMA), enabling them to bring their son to Australia. Justice Sachin Datta emphasized that once adoption is legally finalized under Indian law, additional retrospective documents—such as those based on Queensland’s power-of-attorney requirements or newer Hague or adoption regulations—cannot be demanded. The court also noted that the Australian authorities and Bathinda district magistrate had already provided necessary certifications. Referring to prior precedents, including a Supreme Court order on similar inter-country adoption delays, the judge ruled there are no grounds for CARA to continue withholding the NOC or support letter, and directed the agency to issue it immediately.

This judgment reinforces the principle that legally valid adoptions under HAMA cannot be undermined by procedural delays or extraneous criteria, and it underscores CARA’s duty to facilitate timely NOCs for inter-country adoptions. In this case, after a four-year wait due to bureaucratic inaction, the Australian family will finally be able to reunite with their adopted child.

sources