Madras High Court permits abortion at 30 weeks for 16-year-old assault survivor

Chennai: The Madras High Court has allowed a 16-year-old sexual assault survivor to terminate her 30-week pregnancy, directing a hospital medical board to first certify that the procedure can be carried out without endangering her life.

Justice D Bharatha Chakravarthy heard a petition filed by the girl’s mother seeking permission for termination despite the 24-week limit under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971. The court said reproductive choice and bodily privacy fall within a woman’s rights and emphasised that if a medical board finds the abortion medically safe, it must be performed at the earliest.

The minor, who was assaulted and later reported the matter, is now the subject of a police case at the all-women Samayanallur police station under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012. Medical assessment put the pregnancy at 30 weeks, prompting the hospital to decline the procedure because it exceeded the statutory 24-week limit.

Relying on Supreme Court precedent, the Madras High Court noted that possible side effects cannot by themselves justify denial of termination where the procedure can be safely performed and both the survivor and her guardian consent. The bench stressed that medical termination may be permissible beyond 24 weeks in appropriate cases.

The court ordered the hospital to immediately constitute a medical board. If the board concludes the abortion can be done without risking the girl’s life, the hospital must proceed without delay, following the board’s guidance and legal norms. The court also instructed hospital authorities not to await a certified copy of the order and to act on the web copy so treatment is not postponed.

The matter has been disposed of, subject to the medical board’s findings and compliance with legal safeguards.