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District Magistrates can now decide adoption pleas, rules HC
The Bombay High Court upheld the 2021 amendment to the Juvenile Justice Act, enabling District Magistrates to adjudicate adoption pleas instead of civil courts. It vacated the stay on implementation, paving the way for DMs across Maharashtra to handle adoption applications. The amendment’s effects were previously phased in from 2022 with a stay that began in 2023.
Why It Matters
This ruling broadens who can decide adoption cases, potentially speeding processing and reducing court backlogs, while asserting the DM’s suitability for quasi-judicial roles; it also raises questions about procedural safeguards for adopted children and prospective parents.
Timeline
4 Events
Bombay High Court upholds amendment and vacates stay
May 4, 2026
A division bench of Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande upheld the constitutional validity of the 2021 amendment, vacating the stay on its implementation and enabling District Magistrates across Maharashtra to process and decide adoption applications. The petitioners had warned that DMs performing a 'judicial function' could dilute safeguards for children and adoptive parents, but the court found DMs capable and already performing quasi-judicial functions under other laws and noted the act's provisions guide the process.
Stay on implementation authorised
November 1, 2023
A stay on the amendment's implementation was in force since November 1, 2023.
Amendment comes into effect
September 1, 2022
The amendment came into effect, replacing the word 'court' with 'district magistrate' in relevant provisions of the Act.
Amendment to Juvenile Justice Act enacted in 2021
2021
The 2021 amendment to the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act empowered District Magistrates to adjudicate adoption pleas in place of civil courts.