explained | Indian law on abortion

the story So Far: An important step backward for women’s rights in America, Supreme Court overturns milestone Roe vs. Wade A 1973 decision, which gave women in the US the right to have an abortion before a fetus is viable outside the womb or before the 24-28 week mark. With the US scrapping the landmark decision on abortion, here’s a look at the laws governing abortion in India.

How were abortion laws made in India?

In the 1960s, in view of the large number of induced abortions, the central government ordered the formation of the Shantilal Shah Committee to deliberate on the legalization of abortion in the country. In order to reduce maternal mortality due to unsafe abortion, the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act was enacted in 1971. This law is an exception to the provisions of 312 and 313 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and lays down the rules. How and when can a medical abortion be done?

Under section 312 of the IPC, a person who “voluntarily causes a woman to abort a woman with child” is liable to punishment, which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both, unless it is in good faith Where the objective was to save the life of the pregnant woman. Section 313 of the IPC states that whoever causes an abortion without the consent of the pregnant woman, whether in the last stage of her pregnancy or not, shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten, will be punished. years, plus a fine.

How has the MTP Act evolved from 1971 to 2021?

The latest amendment to the MTP Act was done in 2021. Earlier in 2003 new regulations were introduced to allow the use of the then newly discovered abortion drug misoprostol to medically terminate a pregnancy for up to seven weeks. Comprehensive amendments to the original Act were introduced in 2020 and the amended Act came into force in September 2021.

Under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Act, 2021, abortion after medical opinion is permitted under prescribed circumstances. The 2021 Act raised the upper limit on the gestational period for which a woman can seek a medical abortion from 20 weeks allowed in the 1971 Act to 24 weeks. But this updated upper limit can be used only in specific cases. Gestational age, calculated in weeks, is the medical term to describe how far along a pregnancy is and is measured from the first day of a woman’s last menstrual period or period.

Another major amendment was that the MTP could not be accessed on the advice of a registered medical practitioner until 20 weeks of gestational age. At 20 weeks to 24 weeks, the opinion of two registered physicians is required. In the previous version of the Act, medical abortion up to 12 weeks of pregnancy required the opinion of a registered doctor, while two doctors were required to support abortion up to 20 weeks.

What is the MTP (Amendment) Act, 2021?

Under the 2021 Act, medical termination of pregnancy is permitted if it is supported by medical opinion and is sought for at least one of the following reasons – (1) If the continuance of the pregnancy causes the pregnant woman to would be endangering life (2) if its continuance causes serious injury to the physical or mental health of the woman (3) In case of substantial risk that the child, if born, would suffer from serious physical or mental abnormality.

Under these conditions a pregnancy may be terminated up to 24 weeks of gestational age after the opinion of two registered medical practitioners – (1) if the woman is a survivor of sexual assault or rape or incest (2) if she is a minor (3) if If her marital status has changed during an ongoing pregnancy (ie either widowed or divorced) birth, it will be severely disabled (6) if the woman is in humanitarian settings or disaster, or emergency situations declared by the government.

Further, if the pregnancy is to be terminated after 24 weeks of gestational age, it can be done only on the ground of fetal abnormalities, if a four-member medical board established in each State under the Act, permits to do so. Is. So.

The law, notwithstanding any of the above conditions, also provides that where it is urgently necessary to save the life of the pregnant woman, abortion may be performed by a registered medical practitioner at any time.

Unmarried women can also access abortion under the above conditions, as it does not mention the need for the consent of the spouses. However, if the woman is a minor, the consent of the guardian is required.

Has there been judicial intervention in abortion cases?

Despite the fact that existing laws do not allow unconditional abortions in the country, the landmark 2017 right to privacy in a decision Justice KS Puttaswamy v Union of India and othersThe Supreme Court had held that the decision of a pregnant person to continue with the pregnancy or not is also a part of such person’s right to privacy and, therefore, the right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution.

Many women annually approach the apex court and high courts when medical boards reject their application to reach MTP beyond the gestational upper limit (now 24 weeks), seeking permission to abort the pregnancy, mostly in such cases. in where it results in sexual assault or when a fetal abnormality occurs.

A report written by Anubha Rastogi, advocate for Pratiya Abhiyan, states that in the 15 months till August 2020, high courts across the country were hearing 243 petitions from women seeking permission for abortion. In February this year, the Calcutta High Court allowed a 37-year-old woman, who was 34 weeks pregnant, to undergo a medical abortion after the fetus was diagnosed with a spinal cord ailment. The decision allowed abortion for the farthest pregnancy ever in the country.

What are the criticisms against abortion laws?

According to a 2018 study in knifeAs of 2015, there were 15.6 million abortions in India every year. According to the MTP Act, abortion should be performed only by doctors specializing in gynecology or obstetrics. However, the 2019-20 report of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Rural Health Statistics shows that there is a 70% shortage of obstetricians-gynecologists in rural India.

As the law does not allow abortion at will, critics say it leads women to use illegal abortion in unsafe conditions. Statistics show the annual number of unsafe and illegal abortions in India at 800,000, many of which result in maternal mortality.