New Delhi, Oct. 17 -- The Delhi High Court has directed the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) to strengthen safeguards in the adoption process after finding that administrative lapses led to the erroneous referral of an abandoned infant to a Singapore-based couple who were ineligible to adopt a child in the normal category under the applicable regulations.

Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, while dismissing a petition, held that the couple's acceptance of the child and the family's emotional attachment to her did not create an enforceable right to adoption, as the referral had been made contrary to the Adoption Regulations, 2022.

The court directed CARA to verify the eligibility of prospective adoptive parents before generating refe...