Mumbai The Bombay high court (HC) on Wednesday directed the PD Hinduja Hospital to reply to a petition filed by a Ghatkopar-based couple, seeking to complete their surrogacy procedure, which they had started before the Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) Act and the Surrogacy Act came into effect.
The couple moved the HC seeking urgent directions to the hospital to transfer their cryopreserved embryos to a fertility centre at Thane or any other ART clinics in Mumbai.
The division bench of justices Nitin Sambre and Anil Pansare, while hearing the petition of the couple, was informed that they were married in 2008 and had been blessed with two children. However, both their children died and the woman had to undergo a procedure to remove her uterus. Hence, the couple approached the PD Hinduja hospital.
The petition further stated that in December 2021, the embryos were prepared for implantation. However, after the Surrogacy Act came into force on January 25, 2022, a doctor from the hospital informed the couple that the hospital would not continue with the procedure and also could not transfer the embryos.
The couple then approached Dr Nikhil Chitnis of Dr Malatibai Chitnis Fertility IVF and Child Care Center, Thane, who agreed to continue with the surrogacy procedure in line with the Act. He wrote a letter to P D Hinduja hospital asking them to transfer the frozen embryos to his clinic, however, as the hospital was not cooperating, the couple approached the HC. The bench was informed that the surrogacy procedure had commenced prior to the Act coming into force and should direct Hinduja to transfer the frozen embryos to the Thane hospital.
{{/usCountry}}The couple then approached Dr Nikhil Chitnis of Dr Malatibai Chitnis Fertility IVF and Child Care Center, Thane, who agreed to continue with the surrogacy procedure in line with the Act. He wrote a letter to P D Hinduja hospital asking them to transfer the frozen embryos to his clinic, however, as the hospital was not cooperating, the couple approached the HC. The bench was informed that the surrogacy procedure had commenced prior to the Act coming into force and should direct Hinduja to transfer the frozen embryos to the Thane hospital.
{{/usCountry}}The Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill, 2019 and the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Bill, 2020, which were notified by the central government in January 2022, aim to regulate in vitro fertilisation (IVF) clinics and prohibit commercial surrogacy in India. However, it allows altruistic surrogacy, which is defined as surrogacy in which the couple provides no remuneration except medical expenses to the surrogate.
The ART Act also states that fertility clinics and banks shall not conduct any counselling or procedures within six months of the commencement of the Act, unless such clinics and banks have applied for registration.
After hearing the submissions of the petitioners, the bench directed the P D Hinduja hospital to respond to the petition and adjourned the hearing.
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