A couple filed an application in the district court of Kailali to legally adopt the child born to the girl, but the court returned the application without registering it.
A child born to a raped 12-year-old girl from Chowrapati in Achham has been adopted by the girl's father to a couple he came in contact with. As he was not in a position to return home with the girl and the baby born to him, he entrusted the baby to someone else as an adopted daughter and returned home with only his daughter.
A couple filed an application in the district court of Kailali to legally adopt the child born to a girl child. But after the court returned the petition without registering it, the girl's father said that his granddaughter was adopted by another couple without any formalities.
After the district court said that the child born to the raped girl could not be given for adoption, the girl's father took her from Ekdwar Sankat Management Center (OCMC) in Kailali to his own house in Achham. But he only took his daughter home. He handed over the children born to him from Kailali.
The girl's father said that he brought the child born of a raped daughter and returned to the village after giving it to a couple who came in contact with him. I could not bring home the children born to my underage raped daughter. The court did not give it to those who came saying that they would take them for adoption,' he said, 'I gave it to them by doing practical things without asking anyone. The court did not understand our obligation.
He also said that his daughter asked him to have an abortion before giving birth. If the pregnancy is more than 28 weeks, the law does not allow abortion. Now, if we can't give her a daughter for adoption after giving many reasons,' he lamented, 'the pain of a child being raped by a minor girl was already painful, we were given more pain in the name of the law.' His mother said his health condition was not normal. Fruit, fish, meat should be fed. The doctor sent her saying that it will take time for Nani's health to improve,' said the girl's mother, 'It is difficult to wake up in the morning and evening. The way to go to Bombay and earn has been closed. Nobody cares now. Neither the criminal has been arrested.
The girl's family found out that she was pregnant only after they took her to the Bayalpata hospital for examination on February 2 after seeing her stomach ache. Saying that Bayalpata Hospital and District Hospital Achham cannot perform abortions beyond 25 weeks, the girl victim was referred to One Door Crisis Management Center (OCMC) Kailali. After that, the girl was kept in the safe house of OCMC. The girl, who was under the protection of Kailali OCMC, gave birth to a baby girl on March 29 at Seti Provincial Hospital, Dhangadhi.
A 12-year-old daughter said that her family was financially weak after giving birth to a child and that they were ready to give her up if an organization or someone would adopt her. The couple, who live in Kathmandu as their permanent home in the Far West, filed an application in the District Court of Kailali saying that they are ready to adopt the child. But the court dismissed it saying that the child of the girl child cannot be given as an adopted child. A couple was ready to adopt a daughter born to a 12-year-old girl from Achham. But the judge returned the application without registering it, saying that it is not acceptable," said the source.
According to Chetraj Pant, Srestadar of District Court Kailali, it has been decided that adoption cannot be given considering the right of breast feeding of a child who has not reached the age of 6 months. Giving a child under 6 months of age as a child for adoption will deprive her of the right to breastfeed. Also, the judges could not be convinced of the couple who submitted a claim to adopt a daughter,' he said, 'a child born of rape. The case is ongoing. Later, if the rapist admits that it is their child, they have not been able to tell them what to do.
According to him, the victim who wanted to adopt a daughter had not registered a legal application. Even before the application came, it was decided that it could not be adopted as a daughter on the advice of District Court Kailali Judge Dandpani Lamichhane, Pradeep Kumar Upadhyay, Dipendranath Yogi and Harisingh Dhami.
After the court could not legally give the child born to the girl as an adopted daughter, it came to light that she had practically given it to a couple. It is not seen that the person who took the child took it with wrong intentions. We have asked for a document revealing the identity of the person who took it. He has come in contact with us. The child has now reached Kathmandu," he said. "There does not seem to be a written agreement to give and take. From a practical point of view, it does not appear that the decision of the court has been violated.'
According to him, although informal coordination with the Indian police is being conducted to arrest the accused of rape, the person could not be apprehended because he is absconding.
The girl told the police and her family that she could not inform anyone about the incident because she was repeatedly raped by a man who was related to her uncle and who lived in the other room of the same house and even threatened to kill her at home. Based on the girl's statement, a case has been registered in the district police office in the name of the man on February 4.
