‘Exceptional case’: HC allows woman to undergo emergency termination of pregnancy

The woman from Uttar Pradesh was referred to JJ hospital where the doctors confirmed the anomalies in the foetus and recommended immediate Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP). The division bench of GS Patel and Neela Gokhle allowed the woman to get her pregnancy medically terminated without calling for a report from a medical board

Mumbai: Noting that it is an exceptional case, the Bombay high court on Friday allowed a 25-year-old woman to terminate her 26-week pregnancy immediately after the JJ hospital informed the court that the foetus suffered from serious defects and the woman’s life was in danger.

HT Image

The woman from Uttar Pradesh was referred to JJ hospital where the doctors confirmed the anomalies in the foetus and recommended immediate Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP). The division bench of GS Patel and Neela Gokhle allowed the woman to get her pregnancy medically terminated without calling for a report from a medical board.

“Every day’s delay endangers the petitioner’s (mother) life,” the bench said, directing the JJ hospital to admit the woman immediately. The court recommended carrying out the MTP on an urgent basis and if possible, on Saturday itself.

There is a report from the radiology department which confirms the abnormalities of the foetus in its brain and spine, the bench said, adding, “There is a spinal defect, in addition, a kidney issue and an issue with brain development as well. It is in this view of the matter that we exercise our discretion and do not require a further report from the Medical Board.”

The court said, usually, it would require a report from the Medical Board of JJ hospital with an assessment of the condition of the foetus and the mother’s fitness to undergo the medical termination procedure, but this was an exceptional case.

The husband of the petitioner was employed with the Ministry of Defence and was posted at Amethi, Uttar Pradesh. In the first week of February, the couple came to know that the woman was pregnant.

In the fifth month, during the medical examination, the doctors at a local hospital in UP found several abnormalities in the foetus. The petitioner claimed that after a sonography and ultrasound report, it was found that the foetus had several abnormalities as well as the brain and spinal cord did not develop. The family thus, decided to move to Mumbai for better treatment.

In the petition filed by the couple through their lawyer Hare Krishna Mishra, it was mentioned that the family consulted the doctors at a city hospital where the doctors confirmed that the condition of the foetus and the woman was critical.

The hospital referred the family to JJ hospital for medical termination of the pregnancy. The family approached the JJ hospital, which immediately recommended the termination of the pregnancy in view of the danger to the life of the woman.