A bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud, A S Bopanna, and J B Pardiwala also declared that sexual assault by husbands can take the form of rape...
Digital Desk: The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that all women, irrespective of marital status, are entitled to safe and legal abortions up to 24 weeks of pregnancy under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act.
A bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud, A S Bopanna, and J B Pardiwala also declared that sexual assault by husbands can take the form of rape and that such victims must be permitted to have abortions under the law and rules.
According to the top court, every woman has the right to safe and legal abortion. The SC ruled that a woman's marital status cannot be used to restrict her ability to terminate an unplanned pregnancy.
"Single and unmarried women have the right to abort under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act and rules till 24 weeks of pregnancy," said SC.
The apex court said that reproductive rights are part of individual autonomy and dignity, thus the distinction between married and unmarried women for the purposes of the Act is arbitrary and cannot be upheld constitutionally since it fosters the stereotype that only married women engage in sexual actions.
The court interpreted the MTP Act and Rules 3B to declare that an unmarried woman can have an abortion up to the same 24-week, which is presently allowed for married women.
Justice Chandrachud pronounced the judgment on behalf of the bench on a petition by a 25-year-old unmarried woman against the Delhi High Court's July 16 order declining her request to terminate her 24-week fetus out of the consensual relationship.
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