50-year-old abortion law amended to aid sexual assault victims

New Delhi, March 19

The Parliament on Friday approved a Bill that eases abortion rules for victims of rape, incest and for mothers bearing abnormal foetuses. The Lok Sabha cleared amendments passed by the Rajya Sabha on March 16, paving the way for President Ram Nath Kovind to grant assent to the Bill.

The Medical Termination of Pregnancy Amendment Bill, 2020, eases abortion conditions for a range of women survivors of assault. Under the 1971 law, surgical abortion of foetuses beyond 20 weeks was illegal. The amended Bill allows victims of rape and incest; minors and differently abled to abort foetuses with upper gestation age limit of 24 weeks instead of 20 weeks and scraps the upper gestation age limit for abortion in cases of abnormal foetuses that are incompatible with life and pose a risk to the mother.

The Bill follows several court petitions seeking permission to abort pregnancies at a gestational age beyond the permissible limit on grounds of foetal abnormalities or sexual violence. The amended Bill says, “The upper gestation limit will not apply in cases of substantial foetal abnormalities diagnosed by a medical board. Also the name and other particulars of a woman whose pregnancy has been terminated shall not be revealed except to a person authorised in any law for the time being in force.” — TNS

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