Disability and the medical termination of pregnancy act, 1972

Abstract

"On July 21, 2009, the Supreme Court (SC) of India stayed the order of a division bench of the High Court (HC) of Punjab and Haryana in a civil writ petition filed by the Chandigarh administration. The Chandigarh administration had asked for orders in the case of a mentally challenged, 19-year-old woman who had become pregnant after she was sexually assaulted in a government institution. In its judgment the HC ordered that the woman should undergo a medical termination of pregnancy (MTP) and stated that this was in the best interests of the woman in question (1-3). The SC stated that in this particular case it refused to dilute the provisions of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act. It stated that, as per subsection 4a of section 3 of the MTP Act, “No pregnancy of a woman who has not attained the age of eighteen years, or, who, having attained the age of eighteen years, is a mentally ill person, shall be terminated except with the consent in writing of her guardian” .(4) The court interpreted that the victim being a mentally retarded woman (and not mentally ill) above the age of 18 years, she alone is competent to accord consent for the termination of her pregnancy