New Delhi, Oct. 18 -- The Delhi high court has held that prospective adoptive parents (PAPs) do not acquire an enforceable right to adopt a child merely by accepting the referral and having the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) process their application for a no-objection certificate (NOC), if they are legally ineligible to adopt.

"In the opinion of this Court, an expectation which is founded upon some actions of the authority done in contravention of the statutory regulations, though later corrected before issuance of NOC and passing of final order, cannot be said to be founded on the sanction of law, and therefore, cannot be termed a legitimate' expectation in law neither the referral of Baby K to the petitioner and its accept...