Delhi High Court Permits 16-Yr-Old Abandoned By Parents To Undergo Medical Termination Of 26-Week Pregnancy After Sexual Assault
The Delhi High Court has permitted a 16-year-old girl, who has been abandoned by her parents, to undergo medical termination of her pregnancy at around 26 weeks following a sexual assault.
Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora allowed the minor's plea filed through her maternal uncle, noting that she was under his care and that of her maternal grandmother since being abandoned by her parents in 2022.
The Court directed the LNJP Hospital to carry out the termination at the earliest, subject to necessary precautions, medical protocols and safeguards prescribed by law.
The minor, who was stated to be mentally challenged and unable to comprehend the sexual assault or the fact that she was pregnant, was found to be approximately 25 weeks and one day pregnant when examined at Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital on September 28.
The Medical Board subsequently constituted at LNJP Hospital assessed her to be around 26 weeks pregnant and opined that medical termination could be permitted, although the procedure would be high-risk.
The Board explained that continuation of the pregnancy posed a higher risk to the minor due to her teenage pregnancy, lordotic spinal anomaly and inability to perform a pulmonary function test, with probable restrictive lung disease.
The Court noted that although the pregnancy had advanced beyond the 24 weeks statutory limit under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971, the minor's case warranted exercise of the High Court's constitutional jurisdiction.
“The fact that she is under the care of the said maternal family members is confirmed by the I.O. Moreover, a perusal of the opinion of the Medical Board shows that there is an urgency in this matter and therefore this Court does not deem it appropriate to await a search for the father of the minor survivor to adjudicate this matter,” the Court said.
It observed that Article 21 of the Constitution of India protects life and personal liberty, including the right to live with dignity, bodily integrity, decisional autonomy and reproductive choice.
“These rights assume particular significance where the person seeking relief is a minor and the pregnancy is stated to have resulted from sexual assault,” the Court said.
“In this case, it is even more significant since the minor is stated to be mentally challenged who is unable to comprehend the fact of her pregnancy. Moreover, the Medical Board has opined that the continuation of pregnancy poses higher risk to the life of the minor due to the reason set out at bullet point 3 in the report under the head 'Justification for the decision',” it added.
Further, the Court noted that since the minor was under the care of the maternal family and the Medical Board had indicated urgency, the Court held that it was not appropriate to await the search for her father before adjudicating the plea.
The Court relied upon the Supreme Court's judgments concerning reproductive autonomy and termination of pregnancy beyond statutory limits.
It said that in the case in hand, while the termination itself carried a high risk, the Medical Board had opined that continuation of the pregnancy posed a higher risk to the minor's life.
“In these facts, this Court is satisfied that the present case warrants exercise of its extraordinary jurisdiction under Article 226 to permit and facilitate medical termination of the pregnancy, in the interest of the minor survivor,” the Court held.
The Court directed LNJP Hospital to make all necessary arrangements for the procedure and ensure that it is conducted by competent and appropriately qualified doctors, with specialist support in view of the minor's high-risk status.
The Medical Board and treating doctors have been directed to ensure compliance with the MTP Act, the MTP Rules and all other applicable medical protocols and guidelines.
The Court further directed preservation of foetal tissue and other relevant biological material, to the extent medically feasible, for DNA identification and other purposes connected with the FIR registered in the case.
The State has been directed to bear all reasonable expenses associated with the procedure and the minor's medical care, including investigations, specialist consultations, medicines, hospitalisation, food and other incidental medical requirements.
The Hospital is also directed to provide appropriate post-procedure physical and psychological care and counselling to the minor.
In view of the advanced gestational age and the minor's medical condition, the Court directed LNJP Hospital to act on the order forthwith.