Counsel says no trafficking charge against Sister Baretto, alleges conspiracy

Ujjwal Niketan has never received any aid from any governmental or government-aided agency and most of the funds were sourced from individuals, according to the management

Ujjwal Niketan has never received any aid from any governmental or government-aided agency and most of the fun... Read More

Gurgaon: The counsel for Sister Lily Baretto, Shaju Francis, who had represented her in Saturday's anticipatory bail hearing, clarified to TOI that there isn't any charge of trafficking against his client.

He said in the first FIR, the sister has only been charged under sections 75 (punishment for cruelty to child) and 80 (adoption without following prescribed procedure) of the Juvenile Justice Act, while the second was registered under sections 420 (cheating), 467 (forgery of valuable security), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating) and 471 (using as genuine as fraud) of the IPC.

Regarding the charge of not following procedures while giving away two minor girls for adoption, the counsel, Francis and Drishti Mishra, told the court that while the "correctness" of giving away the two minor girls for adoption using a "single adoption deed" might be debated, it cannot be used to attribute malice on part of Baretto, adding the two girls were siblings, who were placed at the shelter home by their aunt, who could not take care of them. The lawyers also clarified the children were never entrusted to the orphanage by CWC, so giving them away for adoption, Baretto had acted by guidelines for "rehabilitation and social re-integration" in Section 39 of the JJ Act.

Regarding the allegation that one of the orphanage's children was forced to change her surname from "Yadav" to "Baretto", the sister's counsel told TOI "a child yearns for a surname for social acceptance. Not knowing her parents' names, she was comfortable in willingly adopting Sister Baretto's surname" as she looked up to the sister as her mother.

Regarding the prosecution's questioning of the orphanage's fund sources, Francis said Ujjwal Niketan had never received any aid from any "governmental or government-aided agency", and that most of the funds were sourced from individual donations, adding income tax returns (ITRs) were duly filed with Registrar of Societies.

TOP COMMENT

Sister lily and all members of Ujwal Niketan helping orphan children to become independent in all spheres of life will come out clean. God always support good beings and will support now also.

An... Read More

Prerana Sharma

Francis added the case was only at the stage of anticipatory bail, and that the sister has won several awards and felicitations, including by the CWC itself (in 2013) proves she is well-known and respected, and would not flee. The advocates also pleaded that at 70, Baretto suffers from uncontrolled diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and failing vision from cataract.

Francis said the minor girl who was the complainant in the first FIR never alleged beating in her statements, recorded under Section 164 of CrPC, adding that since the sessions court had rejected anticipatory bail, Baretto will now approach the high court for bail, and even the Supreme Court if required.