Demand to legalise termination of pregnancy up to 24th week gains momentum

The voice among the medical fraternity for legalising abortion up to 24th week of pregnancy has strengthened, after the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) booked a 65-year-old gynaecologist for carrying out abortion on a 21-week pregnant woman on April 4.

In India, section 3 of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act-1971, does not allow abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy. The National Commission of Women (NCW) had recommended to the Union health ministry to allow abortions till 24 weeks of pregnancy. Following which in 2014, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare department proposed an amendment to the MTP Act. The proposed Act – Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Bill, 2014 – intended to increase the abortion limit from the present 20 weeks to 24 weeks.

According to the medical fraternity, instead of punishing the doctor, who must have carried out the procedure in good faith without understanding the gravity of the legal risk she was inviting, politicians should table the amended MTP Act.

"In the light of proposed amendment as well as medical ethics, terminating a pregnancy with serious abnormality is perfectly justifiable. It is because of the political apathy that the proposed amendment to MTP Act has not being tabled and passed in the parliament yet. This situation is extremely dangerous for the entire society. Such criminal action is creating more victims among doctors and patients unnecessarily," said Dr Nikhil Datar, gynaecologist at the Cloud Nine hospital.

Datar, who is also a health rights activist, said if the government had tabled the amendment in court, the Pune doctor would not have been booked. As per the draft law, for which the ministry had sought public comments in 2014, the decision to allow abortion between 20 and 24 weeks can be taken "in good faith" by a healthcare provider if, among other conditions, the pregnancy involves substantial risks to the mother or child, or if it is "alleged by the pregnant woman to have been caused by rape".

In August 2008, a couple from Bhayander – Nikita and Haresh Mehta – had approached the high court with a request of an abortion, as the baby had congenital heart defect. At the time, Nikita was 24 weeks pregnant and was not permitted an abortion. Three weeks later, she suffered a miscarriage.

Amit Kharkhanis, the lawyer representing the Mehta case in the Bombay High Court, said, "Some countries, including the US and the UK, allow termination till 24 weeks. This move will definitely help several women. While we were fighting the case in 2008, we had suggested the same thing in our petition."

Medical experts in India have been demanding that a few abnormalities should be included as a valid reason for MTP after 20 weeks to empower the woman to take the decision. "Most cardiac anomalies can be detected only after around 22 weeks of pregnancy. Thereafter, parents need time to talk it out with their family and friends. This ensures quality life for the unborn child. It is, therefore, necessary to implement the amended MTP law at the earliest," said Dr Bipin Pandit, gynaecologist and a member of the Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC).

Dr Rishma Dhillon-Pai, president-elect of the Federation of Obstetric and Gynaecological Societies of India (FOGSI), said the period between 20 and 22 weeks offered a good opportunity to check for anomalies in foetuses through sonography. "We generally ask a patient to undergo tests around the 18th week to find abnormalities. Abroad, data shows this extension is a boon to a lot of women," said Pai.