Supreme Court: MTP law needs changes to deal with unwanted pregnancies

NEW DELHI: Noting that cases of unwanted pregnancies, especially involving minors, are on the rise, the Supreme Court on Monday said the law regulating termination of pregnancy needs to be amended to deal with these cases and quashed contempt proceedings against the AIIMS director and the health minister after learning that its order to terminate the pregnancy of a 15-year-old girl had been complied with and a premature baby was delivered through induction of labor. Amit Anand Chaudhry reports.Justices BV Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan said: “It is not easy for us here. No one wins and no one loses. But then we have to make decisions without emotion.“The court issued notice on the contempt plea after AIIMS, which was asked to carry out the process, showed reluctance to comply with its order and instead sought a review of it.However, additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, appearing before AIIMS, said the rights of the unborn child should also be considered and hoped that the court would one day review and recognize this aspect. ASG said a baby boy was born on May 2 and that both the minor mother and the child are safe and healthy. The mother will be discharged from the hospital soon.The court later said: “We do not find any reason to further consider this contempt petition. Therefore, the contempt proceedings against the defendants are dismissed.” The baby boy was born at 29 weeks and two days of gestation and weighed 1,380 grams at birth. He was initially stable and did not require aggressive resuscitation, but was shifted to the NICU at AIIMS for specialized care. On the need to change the law to deal with cases involving unwanted pregnancies among minors, the Supreme Court said that by the time the family comes to know about the matter, such pregnancies are often beyond the legal limit, leaving the family with no option but to approach the judiciary. The court said that if termination of pregnancy is not allowed, the family may go to jail, thereby putting the life of the minor at risk.“The trend of such unwanted pregnancies is rising in society today. They do not notify the parents in time. By the time the family makes a decision, it has been seven months. It is very difficult… There is a flaw in the law or the social trend. Someone has to answer,” the judge said.The ASG responded by saying there was a need to spread awareness about sex education, stressing that the 2021 amendment had extended the statutory period to 24 weeks.