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Analysis on the Medical Termination Pregnancy Law in India.

 Analysis of the medical termination of pregnancy law in India.

Issues like abortion have always been controversial in a traditional thinking society like India.

(Abortion is a very sensitive matter in which India was successful to make laws and regulations

but the Indian government failed in its effective execution.) Before the enactment of the MTP

Act, about 5 million terminations were carried out per year in India. To lay down the law

government set up a committee under Mr. Shantilal Shah to propose certain draft laws. Thus

Medical termination of pregnancy act 1971 was passed.

Salient features of the Medical termination of pregnancy Act 1971

According to this act, a pregnancy may be terminated by a registered practitioner only.

• Where the length of the pregnancy does not exceed 12 weeks the termination can be carried

out based on one registered medical practitioner.

• Where the length of pregnancy exceeds 12-20, then the opinion of two registered medical

practitioners is required to terminate the pregnancy.

The basis of opinion on termination is if the continuance of the pregnancy would involve a risk to

the life to the life of the pregnant woman or would cause grave injury to her “physical or mental

health” or if there is a substantial risk that if the child were born, it would suffer from such

physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped. In the event, that the

pregnancy exceeds 20 weeks, then the woman has to approach the High Court concerned or

the Supreme Court by filing a writ petition under Article 226 or Article 32 of the Constitution of

India respectively. Thereafter, the Court concerned directs that a medical board be set up,

which is to prepare a report and submit it before the Court. Based on this report, the Court either

allows or disallows the woman to undergo a medical termination.

Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Act 2021

The Bill proposes that, if a woman who is pregnant for a period of 20 weeks, wishes to undergo

a termination, she will need to seek an opinion from one registered medical practitioner and

such a proposed amendment is a welcome change as it reduced the mental, physical and

financial burden on women. Further, the Bill proposes that if the length of the pregnancy is

between 20 weeks to 24 weeks, then she will need an opinion from two registered medical

practitioners before undergoing a termination. However, the Bill uses the term “in case of such

category of woman as may be prescribed by rules made under this Act,” and therefore, only

women who fall into the category as prescribed by the rules can avail of this option. However,

termination, in this case, is also permissible for “such category of woman as may be prescribed

by rules made under this Act”. The Bill does not state any such category and this

ambiguity/caveat can be problematic as the Rules and not the Act will determine the category of

women who can undergo termination in such an instance. In order to save the life of a woman,

only the opinion of one registered medical practitioner is necessary, regardless of the length of

the pregnancy. This provision exists presently in the MTP Act as well.

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