NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday expanded the scope of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act (MTP) to include “unmarried woman” and allowed a woman to abort her 24-week pregnancy arising out of a consensual relationship.
A bench of Justices DY Chandrachud, Surya Kant and AS Bopanna directed the AIIMS director to set up a medical board of two doctors to examine the woman by Friday under the provisions of the MTP Act. It also asked the board to determine whether the pregnancy, if terminated could risk the life of the woman or not. “We request the AIIMS director to constitute a medical board in terms of provisions of Section 3(2)(d) MTP Act by tomorrow (Friday). In the event the medical board concludes that the foetus can be aborted without any danger to the life of the petitioner (woman), the AIIMS shall carry out the abortion in terms of the petition...,” the bench said.
The SC sought the report of the medical board within one week of the procedure and said the order of the Delhi High Court stands modified to the above extent. The bench said provisions of the MTP Act amended in 2021 include the word “partner” instead of “husband” in the explanation to section 3, which shows the intent of Parliament that it was not to confine the situations arising only out of matrimonial relationships.
It said the use of the word “partner” ascribes to an intention of Parliament to cover “unmarried woman” under the act, which is in consonance with the Constitution. It added that the Delhi HC had taken an unduly restricted view by not allowing the woman to undergo medical termination of pregnancy at 23 weeks arising out of a consensual relationship on the ground that she was “unmarried”.
The bench sought the assistance of Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati on the interpretation of the provisions of the act and observed that allowing the petitioner woman to suffer an unwanted pregnancy will be contrary to the object and spirit of the legislation.
It said the petitioner should not be denied the benefit of the law merely on the ground that she is an unmarried woman. In an order issued on July 16, a Delhi HC bench refused to grant permission to the woman to abort the 23-week foetus, saying it is not permitted under the abortion law after 20 weeks for pregnancy arising out of a consensual relationship.
The petitioner, a 25-year-old woman, had told the court that her partner, with whom she was in a consensual relationship, had refused to marry her. She had stressed that giving birth outside the wedlock would cause her psychological agony as well as social stigma and she was not mentally prepared to be a mother.