3 months on, baby girl of 10-yr-old Chandigarh rape victim gets ‘loving’ home in Maharashtra

Three-and-a-half months after a 10-year-old rape victim gave birth to a girl at a city hospital, a “well-to-do” couple from Maharashtra has adopted the infant.

“Extremely happy”, the family took her home last week. The couple got to know about the child through the website of the Central Adoption Resource Authority, which had uploaded details of the baby after she was born on August 17.

The UT social welfare department has confirmed the development.

The 10-year-old girl was raped by her two maternal uncles and one of them impregnated her. Later, a special court in a fast-track trial found the duo guilty and awarded them life term till death.

Caring parents

Sources said the baby has been adopted by a well-to-do family, who were “very caring”. When the couple arrived here, they also brought clothes for her, said sources.

Meanwhile, child welfare committee chairman Sangeeta Vardhan laid rest to the rumours that a foreign couple was adopting the child and said adoption has taken place according to the guidelines.

“A few days back, the family came to take the baby home. Other details are being kept confidential to respect the couple’s privacy and this is also in the child’s best interest,” she said.

However, some paperwork is still pending but the pre-adoption undertaking has been signed.

‘We prayed for her bright future’

Vardhan said the entire team at Ashiana, a specialised adoption agency (SAA) in Chandigarh, wished the baby well and “prayed that she had a loving home and bright future”.

“The staff is usually aware that the baby in their care will leave the care home some day,” she said. “So more than the fear of parting, they are rather happy to see the child get a loving home.”

The SAA will also be monitoring and reporting every six months about the adopted child for two years.

After parents of the 10-year-old rape victim refused to “even see the face of the baby”, she was taken to Ashiana where she was looked after by house mothers, nurses and caregivers, under the supervision of the social welfare department. A paediatrician also monitored her health regularly.

The baby does not have any medical deficiency even though it was a premature delivery. Her height, weight and growth have been reported to be normal as well.

The case had made global headlines after the Supreme Court rejected the rape victim’s abortion plea. India has a 20-week ceiling on abortion, unless there is a grave danger to the mother or the unborn baby. The victim’s pregnancy was discovered when she was 30 weeks pregnant after her mother took her for a check-up at a city-based hospital.