{"id":654,"date":"2018-01-15T06:55:12","date_gmt":"2018-01-15T06:55:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.wakilsahab.in\/news\/?p=654"},"modified":"2018-01-15T06:55:12","modified_gmt":"2018-01-15T06:55:12","slug":"court-says-woman-can-abort-her-26-week-old-disabled-baby-says-birth-would-hurt-her-mental-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wakilsahab.in\/news\/court-says-woman-can-abort-her-26-week-old-disabled-baby-says-birth-would-hurt-her-mental-health\/","title":{"rendered":"Court Says Woman Can Abort Her 26-Week-Old Disabled Baby, Says Birth Would Hurt Her Mental Health"},"content":{"rendered":"

Source –\u00a0lifenews.com<\/strong><\/p>\n

A woman whose unborn baby has a fatal condition will be allowed to abort the baby after the India Supreme Court granted her petition for a late-term abortion this week.<\/p>\n

The woman, whose name is not included in reports, is 26 weeks pregnant with her unborn child,\u00a0according to the Indian Express. She lives in the Mumbai area.<\/p>\n

Abortions are illegal after 20 weeks of pregnancy in India. However, women increasingly have been petitioning the high court for permission to abort their late-term unborn babies because of fetal abnormalities. Some rape victims also have made requests to the high court.<\/p>\n

In the latest case, a panel of doctors at Sir JJ Hospital who examined the woman and her unborn baby said the baby does not have a skull and probably will not survive, according to the report. The doctors also said the woman was experiencing \u201cimmense mental agony.\u201d<\/p>\n

Based on the panel\u2019s recommendation, the high court ruled, \u201cWe consider it appropriate in the interest of justice and particularly, to permit the petitioner (woman) to undergo medical termination of her pregnancy under the provisions of Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe condition of the foetus is not compatible with life. The medical evidence clearly suggests that there is no point in allowing the pregnancy to run its full course since the foetus would not be able to survive outside the uterus without a skull,\u201d the court continued.<\/p>\n

The court has received an increasing number of petitions for late-term abortions in the past few years. Because of their frequency, the Supreme Court of India asked the government in July to consider setting up a permanent medical board to examine late-term abortion petitions, according to the Herald. Currently, the courts set up temporary medical boards to examine individual cases.<\/p>\n

Typically, the Indian high court\u2019s decisions about late-term abortion petitions have been based on the physical health of the mother and\/or her unborn child.<\/p>\n

In February, for example, the high court rejected another woman\u2019s request for\u00a0a late-term abortion because her unborn baby has Down syndrome.\u00a0The Free Press Journal reports\u00a0the court said the woman\u2019s life was not at risk and her baby should not be aborted simply because of the genetic disorder. The woman was 26 weeks pregnant at the time.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is sad that the child may suffer from physical and mental challenges and it\u2019s unfortunate for the mother but we can\u2019t allow an abortion\u2026We have a life in our hands,\u201d the court\u00a0said\u00a0in that case.<\/p>\n

However, the court has given permission for other women to abort their late-term unborn babies in cases of fatal fetal anomalies.<\/p>\n

The high court also sometimes grants exceptions in cases involving rape. In May, it gave\u00a0a 10-year-old rape victim permission to have her unborn baby aborted.\u00a0<\/span>Dr. Ashok Chauhan, a panelist in the case, described the situation as \u201cborderline\u201d because the girl was about 20 weeks pregnant, the legal limit. The panel also mentioned concerns about the young girl\u2019s physical and mental health.<\/p>\n

In 2015, the India Supreme Court also gave an exception to a 14-year-old rape victim who was past 20 weeks pregnant. At the time,\u00a0the BBC reported<\/u>\u00a0a team of doctors decided the girl was not physically or emotionally fit to have a baby.<\/p>\n

However, the court\u00a0refused to give another 10-year-old rape victim permission to abort her late-term unborn baby this year, saying an abortion would not be good for the mother or the unborn baby.<\/p>\n

At 20 weeks, an unborn baby already is fully formed and close to the point of viability (about 23 weeks).\u00a0Late-term abortions also are risky\u00a0and can be deadly for the mother.<\/p>\n

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