Observing that limiting permission to terminate pregnancy beyond 20-weeks only to married women was discriminatory to unmarried women, the Bombay High Court has allowed a 23-year-old unmarried woman to medically terminate her pregnancy. The court also directed the Union government to consider making changes in the forms, formats and procedures.
The HC did not approve of the objection raised by the Maharashtra government to the woman’s plea on the grounds that she does not fall under the “specified category” of women who can undergo medical termination of pregnancy beyond the 20-week period.
Rule 3-B of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Rules provides the specified categories of women who are eligible for termination of pregnancy up to 24 weeks, without seeking court’s permission. This includes sexual assault victims, minors, widows or divorcees, women with physical or mental disabilities and if there are any abnormalities in the foetus.
The HC was hearing a petition by a woman seeking to terminate her pregnancy citing financial constraints to take care of the baby. She admitted to getting pregnant in a consensual relationship.
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She was 21-weeks pregnant when she went to JJ Hospital for check up. She was asked to seek court’s permission for termination of her pregnancy as she had crossed the 20-week threshold.
The MTP Act mandates court’s permission to terminate pregnancy beyond 20-week gestation.
The state government opposed the plea contending that she does not fall under the category of women eligible for termination of pregnancy up to 24 weeks.
The court remarked that if the provision of the law was to be interpreted such that its benefits can be extended only to married women then it would perpetuate the stereotype and socially held notion. “A narrow interpretation of the law, limited only to married women, would render the provision discriminatory towards unmarried women and hence violative of Article 14 of the Constitution of India,” a bench of Justices Sarang Kotwal and Neela Gokhale said on Monday.
The court permitted the woman to undergo medical procedure to terminate her pregnancy.
The judges asked the Union government to “consider making changes in the forms, formats and procedures” to be followed in such cases in consonance with the observations made by the Supreme Court recently. The apex court, while interpreting Rule 3-B of the MTP Act, said that the case of an unmarried woman would also be covered under the provisions of the Act.
