AN ADOPTED CHILD BY A SINGLE MOTHER IS ENTITLED TO TAKE SINGLE MOTHER'S CASTE

Recently, a Bench of Justices Sunil B Shukre and GA Sanap of the Bombay High Court held that an adopted child is entitled to take the single mother's caste. 

In this instant case, the petitioner approached the Deputy District Collector applied for the issuance of a caste certificate to her son. The same was rejected by the authority stating that the caste documents of the father were not submitted. 

The petitioner then filed an appeal before the District Caste Certificate Scrutiny Committee that confirmed the order. Aggrieved by the order, the petitioner moved to the HC.

The petitioner stated that there is no question of the biological father as her son was adopted from an orphanage. And, the orphanage was not aware of the biological parent of the child. 

The Collector stated that as per the Government Resolution of 2001 a permanent residential proof of the father or grandfather or great-grandfather needs to be submitted, which was not submitted in the present case. Hence, the application was rejected.

The Bench observed that the child had been adopted under the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act. As per the Act, the child becomes a member of the adoptive parents and such a child would take the caste of the adoptive parents.

The Bench opined that caste authorities completely missed the vital aspect that the petitioner adopted her son after requisite orders from the Court. It thus directed the Collector to issue a caste certificate within two weeks.