Key Takeaways
- The Supreme Court granted a petition for a rape victim from Gujarat to terminate her pregnancy.
- Under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, women have a 24‑week window, with extensions possible via court petitions.
- The Gujarat High Court originally denied the plea, prompting higher‑court intervention.
New Delhi: Supreme Court on Monday allowed a rape victim from Gujarat to terminate her pregnancy.
A two-judge bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Justice B V Nagarathna and also comprising Justice Ujjal Bhuyan in its order allowed the woman’s plea to terminate her pregnancy.
The Apex Court was informed by the counsel for the petitioner (Victim, woman) that the 25-year-old woman had approached the Gujarat High Court on August 7.
The MTP (Medical Termination of Pregnancy) Act of 2021 has given woman a sufficient period of 24 weeks of gestation to abort the pregnancy. It also leaves a scope of termination even after 24 weeks by filing a writ petition before an appropriate court.
While allowing the plea of the woman, the Supreme Court observed, “Indian society, within the institution of marriage, pregnancy is a source of joy for a couple and society.
However, outside marriage, it has effects on the mental health of a woman when it is unwanted.”
Supreme Court had earlier on a special sitting on Saturday, criticised the Gujarat High Court which has rejected the victim’s plea to terminate the pregnancy and said that in such cases, “there should be a sense of urgency” and not a “lackadaisical attitude treating it as a normal matter”.
