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Finally some signs of relief for the 14-year-old rape victim from Gujarat whose request for abortion was denied by the High Court. The Supreme Court has stepped into the breach and said it will permit abortion of the baby if the doctors consent to it.
The case was heard on an emergency basis since the class 10 girl is already 24 weeks pregnant. The girl was raped by a doctor in January this year who she had consulted with for typhoid. The doctor sedated her and raped her and threatened her with dire consequences if she reported the matter to her parents. It wasn’t until she complained of stomach pain and was discovered to be pregnant, that the whole story emerged.
Ruling that an abortion was legal if it was necessary to save her life, a Supreme Court Bench led by Chief Justice of India H.L. Dattu on Tuesday overruled the earlier decision by the trial court and Gujarat high court.
Both courts had earlier refused permission for abortion (read here) even if it meant seriously endangering the health of the victim. When the High Court had refused permission for termination of pregnancy on July 24, it had ruled that the baby was innocent and “did not ask to be born”.
Calling it a “difficult decision,” Justice Abhilasha Kumari had said, “Whatever be the circumstances in which the child was conceived, whatever the trauma of the young mother, the fact remains that the child is also not to blame for being conceived.”
On the other hand the Supreme Court issued a ‘flexible’ order, leaving it to a team of doctors and a psychologist to decide whether to take a call on whether termination of pregnancy was in the interest of the girl’s life. The court said if they found that to be the case, she could go ahead with the abortion.
“We have the interest of the girl in our mind. But we also know there is a life inside her. We want to do something for her and that is why we are contemplating a way out. There is a reason why we have included a clinical psychologist in the panel. The girl’s mental health will also be considered,” said a bench of Justices Anil R Dave and Kurian Joseph.
One of these doctors has already recommended an abortion when she examined the teenager last week.
According to a report filed by Dr. Riddhi Shukla on July 25, she said, “When I examined and talked to her, I found her mentally and psychologically devastated and completely broken down. She is also physically and medically too weak to deliver a child. Pregnancy at this age and situation can lead to a serious threat to her life.”
We are only thankful that the Supreme Court displayed better sense and judgment than the High Court judge who clearly dismissed the case on reasons of culture. Court rulings on abortion are a sticky affair the world over as no judge wants to be seen as being pro-abortion. Abortion as an issue brings out hotfoot all the passionate championers of pro-life (save the baby) versus the equally vehement pro-choice (her body, her right) sect.
But in this case, at least, given the horrific mental state and the possible stigma of a girl in class 10 delivering a baby, the High Court should have acted a little bit more sensitive. After all, every week lost in litigation poses further danger to this young girl.
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