The Bombay High Court has permitted a 31-year-old woman to terminate her 25-week pregnancy from a consensual relationship after her partner refused her support. The court said she could get the procedure done at a hospital of her choice.
Observing that the petitioner was “left in lurch by her own circumstances as well as refusal of her partner to offer support or assistance to her in any manner, despite being an active participant in bringing about the present situation”, the court said the petitioner was “naturally apprehensive about social stigma and facing her own parents, who may not be supportive in the circumstances”.
The HC also asked her ex-partner to give Rs 1 lakh to the petitioner for her medical expenses in addition to legal expenses and accompany her to the hospital, if she so desired and remain with her during the procedure.
A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Neela K Gokhale on June 19 passed an order on the plea by the woman unwilling to continue with the pregnancy.
The petitioner woman had submitted that she was in a consensual relationship with her partner and the pregnancy occurred due to failure of a contraceptive device. She also submitted that she was no longer in the said relationship.
On June 13, the HC had directed the medical board of state-run JJ Hospital to examine the petitioner. The expert who conducted her psychiatric evaluation found that the petitioner had a history of sadness and stress due to financial constraints and inter-personal conflicts along with a history of alcohol consumption and smoking. The Board unanimously found her fit to undergo the procedure under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act.
The petitioner, through advocate Nikita Raje, sought termination of her pregnancy and argued that she has no financial or emotional support to carry the pregnancy to its full term. The continuation of the same would hamper her mental health due to anguish of her situation, Raje added.
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The petitioner also informed the court that she had quit her job a few months ago and today, instead of looking for a new job, she was required to run from pillar to post to consult doctors to terminate her pregnancy.
The HC noted that as per the report, the petitioner has a history of illness and her parents/family was not aware of the pregnancy. As per petitioner, if her parents learn about the same, they would not accept it, “leaving her in a complete lurch to fend for herself”.
After interacting with the petitioner in the chamber, the judges noted that she appeared to be “extremely disturbed, having to face these challenges”.
The bench noted that petitioner had made “conscious decision to terminate pregnancy” and the judges ascertained that she made the “choice of her own free will”.
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The HC considered past Supreme Court verdicts, petitioner’s right to reproductive freedom and bodily autonomy, findings of the medical board related to her psychological condition.
“We are satisfied that continuance of the pregnancy shall adversely affect the already disturbed psychological condition of the petitioner. Hence, in the peculiar facts of this case, we permit the petitioner to medically terminate the pregnancy,” the court held and allowed the woman’s plea.
