Azerbaijan, Baku, Oct. 1 / Trend, N. Umid
The marriage of a caretaker with a stepchild is possible only in exceptional cases, Iranian Minister of Justice, Mostafa Pourmohammadi said, ISNA news agency reported.
Responding to critics of a newly approved bill to protect the rights of children which include a clause that allows caretaker of a family to marry his/her adopted child, Pourmohammadi said that, the gist of the bill is not focused on caretaker - stepchild marriage.
He added that the bill should be revised in accordance with Islamic rules and in a manner that won't cause misunderstandings.
The bill which passed in Iran's parliament last week, opens the door for the caretaker of a family to marry his or her adopted child if a court rules it is in the interests of the individual child.
Iran's Guardian Council, a body of clerics and jurists which vets all parliamentary bills before the constitution and Islamic law, has yet to issue its verdict on the controversial legislation.
It should be recalled that, the marriage of caretaker with a stepchild was forbidden in the first version of the parliament's bill, but Iran's Guardian Council announced that the bill is against Islamic laws and returned it to parliament for revision.
After that, Iranian parliamentarians added the clause that allows caretaker to marry his/her adopted child under court permission to the bill.
Human rights activist criticized the bill, saying that approved bill, 'legalizes pedophilia.'