MP court denies rape survivor permission to abort foetus

BHOPAL\JABALPUR: The high court in Jabalpur has refused permission to a pregnant rape victim for abortion as the procedure might kill her.

Government advocate Ankit Agrawal said a 23-year old rape victim from Seoni district of Madhya Pradesh had approached the high court saying that she did not want the child. The high court had appointed a three-member medical board from the Jabalpur medical college to determine whether her pregnancy could be

THE HC APPOINTED A MEDICAL BOARD FROM THE JABALPUR MEDICAL COLLEGE TO DETERMINE IF AN ABORTION WAS SAFE IN HER CONDITION

terminated. The board in its report said that the victim was 28 weeks pregnant, she was anemic and other complications as well and therefore an abortion could end up killing her. On the basis of the board’s advice, Justice S Abhyankar refused permission.

In her petition, the victim had said that she was from a poor family and earned her living doing tailoring jobs. In her course of her work she met one Rajesh who promised marriage to her and they had a relationship which resulted in her pregnancy.

However, Rajesh was already married, a fact he had hidden from her and refused to marry her. She lodged report against Rajesh on December 9, but the local doctors refused abortion as she was already four and half months pregnant, which led the victim to approach the high court.

The court heard the victim’s plea during the winter vacation and directed that a team of doctors from Seoni district hospital examine her, and the doctors said that the victim’s life would be in danger if she had an abortion.

The victim then demanded that she should be medically examined by doctors of the Jabalpur medical college, which was granted on January 3, 2018, and the court directed the medical team to submit report within two days.

The report of the Jabalpur medical college team concurred with the findings of the doctors of the Seoni district hospital.