The Bombay High Court has permitted a minor girl from Pune, a victim of child-marriage, to terminate her 28-week pregnancy as it had multiple foetal defects and abnormalities.
The bench of Justices PD Naik and NR Borkar noted that the girl herself was HIV seropositive, which means that she was detected with antibodies to HIV.
The 17-year-old had filed a petition in the high court through her lawyer Shilpa Pawar, seeking permission to terminate her pregnancy as scans had revealed that the foetus had skeletal anomalies with the possibility of genetic abnormalities.
Under the provisions of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, the court's nod is required to terminate a pregnancy beyond the 24-week gestation period.
During an earlier hearing, the high court on April 8 had directed the constitution of a medical board to examine the girl. The high court relied on the report submitted by the medical board of the state-run Sassoon Hospital in Pune, which recommended termination of the pregnancy as the girl is a minor and a victim of child marriage with HIV seropositive status. The report stated that the petitioner is "fit for termination of pregnancy."
After going through the report, the bench said, "Termination of pregnancy is granted on the basis of the mental and medical situation of the patient. We allow the petitioner to undergo termination of pregnancy."
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