Defer termination of 26-wk pregnancy, Supreme Court tells AIIMS

New Delhi, October 10

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A day after allowing abortion of a 26-week pregnancy of a married woman, the Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the AIIMS to defer the procedure after doctors said the foetus had a chance of being born.

A Bench led by CJI DY Chandrachud said he would constitute a Bench to take up the matter on Wednesday.

The decision came after Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, representing the Centre, sought a recall of its order passed on Monday by a Bench of Justice Hima Kohli and Justice BV Nagarathna.

Bhati submitted that the AIIMS medical board had claimed that the foetus had a viable chance of being born and they would have to conduct a foeticide. “Can you come with a formal application for recall (of the order)? We will place it before the Bench, which passed the order,” the CJI said. The upper limit for termination of pregnancy is 24 weeks for married women, special categories, including survivors of rape, and other vulnerable women.