India
‘Judicial conscience’: Bombay HC refuses woman’s approval for termination of 26-week pregnancy | India News – Times of India
NEW DELHI: The Bombay High Court on Monday dismissed the plea of a 28-year-old woman seeking termination of her 26-week pregnancy, citing “judicial conscience” and the lack of mechanisms to ensure equal responsibility of the biological father in such scenarios. The woman, who is currently going through divorce proceedings with her estranged husband, claimed she had become pregnant by a friend.
A bench comprising Justices AS Gadkari and Neela Gokhale pointed out the difficult circumstances faced by women like the petitioner and the absence of mechanisms to ensure that biological fathers share equal social and economic responsibilities.
“Our legal conscience does not allow us to grant the applicant permission to medically terminate the pregnancy at this stage and also emphasises ‘Social stigma‘ as the main reason behind the request to terminate the pregnancy. Consent is therefore refused,” the court said.
The woman had tried to terminate her “unwanted” pregnancy. According to her request, she is already the mother of a four-year-old daughter and is in the middle of a divorce. The pregnancy occurred while she was in a relationship with a friend.
The judges recognized the woman’s right to reproductive freedombodily autonomy and choice, but stressed that the medical board did not consider her suitable for abortion at this time.
The court’s ruling noted that the main reasons behind the woman’s request to terminate the pregnancy were social stigma and her financial situation. However, these reasons were not considered sufficient for an exception to allow termination after the 24-week period allowed by the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Action.
“We wish to express our sympathy for the difficult circumstances in which women like the applicant find themselves, especially since there is no effective mechanism to ensure that the biological father is subjected to the same amount of pain, responsibility, social blame and social punishment as women in such cases,” the Supreme Court said.
The court also noted that once the baby is born, the applicant can choose to adoption.
The woman indicated that due to the stress in her private life, she did not pay much attention to her menstrual cycle, which is why it was only later that it was discovered that she was pregnant.
“If the applicant has to go through the procedure, unwanted pregnancy“Then there is probably mental and physical suffering and trauma,” the request said.
According to the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, termination of a pregnancy after 24 weeks requires court approval.
The Supreme Court expressed optimism and expects the government to take proactive measures in future to address such complexities.
A bench comprising Justices AS Gadkari and Neela Gokhale pointed out the difficult circumstances faced by women like the petitioner and the absence of mechanisms to ensure that biological fathers share equal social and economic responsibilities.
“Our legal conscience does not allow us to grant the applicant permission to medically terminate the pregnancy at this stage and also emphasises ‘Social stigma‘ as the main reason behind the request to terminate the pregnancy. Consent is therefore refused,” the court said.
The woman had tried to terminate her “unwanted” pregnancy. According to her request, she is already the mother of a four-year-old daughter and is in the middle of a divorce. The pregnancy occurred while she was in a relationship with a friend.
The judges recognized the woman’s right to reproductive freedombodily autonomy and choice, but stressed that the medical board did not consider her suitable for abortion at this time.
The court’s ruling noted that the main reasons behind the woman’s request to terminate the pregnancy were social stigma and her financial situation. However, these reasons were not considered sufficient for an exception to allow termination after the 24-week period allowed by the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Action.
“We wish to express our sympathy for the difficult circumstances in which women like the applicant find themselves, especially since there is no effective mechanism to ensure that the biological father is subjected to the same amount of pain, responsibility, social blame and social punishment as women in such cases,” the Supreme Court said.
The court also noted that once the baby is born, the applicant can choose to adoption.
The woman indicated that due to the stress in her private life, she did not pay much attention to her menstrual cycle, which is why it was only later that it was discovered that she was pregnant.
“If the applicant has to go through the procedure, unwanted pregnancy“Then there is probably mental and physical suffering and trauma,” the request said.
According to the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, termination of a pregnancy after 24 weeks requires court approval.
The Supreme Court expressed optimism and expects the government to take proactive measures in future to address such complexities.
