Hyderabad : The Telangana govt has challenged a high court order restoring custody of a three-year-old boy to a couple claiming to be his adoptive parents, arguing that the alleged adoption is under dispute and forms part of an ongoing illegal adoption investigation in Jagtial district.
A division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice P Sam Koshy and Justice Suddala Chalapathi Rao on Wednesday heard the state’s appeal against an interim order passed by a single judge and adjourned the matter to Nov 18.
The case concerns a three-year-old child, Rudhra Mahesh, whose custody was restored to Kasarapu Saritha and Srinivas by a single judge on Oct 16. The petitioners contended that the child’s biological parents had voluntarily given him in adoption and that a registered adoption deed was executed in Nov 2023. The bench is expected to take up the matter for further hearing on Nov 18.
The couple had approached the high court alleging that child protection authorities had forcibly taken the child from them during an investigation into an alleged illegal adoption racket being probed by Jagtial police. Based on their plea, the single judge directed the authorities to return the child to their custody. Questioning that order, the state govt argued that the validity of the adoption itself was disputed and required examination in accordance with law before custody could be restored. Authorities also informed the court that the circumstances surrounding the transfer of the child are part of an ongoing criminal investigation. Seeking suspension of the single judge’s order, the state argued that the matter required detailed examination before any final decision on custody could be taken.