A 29-year-old woman’s plea to terminate her 27-week pregnancy over severe foetal abnormalities led the Delhi High Court on Wednesday to pull up doctors at Dr Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital for failing to clearly state whether the procedure was medically feasible, despite specific court directions.
Hearing the matter, Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav deprecated the conduct of the medical board constituted at the hospital and directed the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences to freshly examine the woman and clearly state whether termination of the pregnancy can be carried out and what consequences it may involve.
The woman had moved the High Court on May 1, stating that continuing the pregnancy posed a serious threat to her physical and mental health as the foetus had developed severe abnormalities and faced the risk of sudden death in the womb.
The case traces back to mid-March, when, during the 21st week of pregnancy, scans first showed severely restricted foetal growth. By early April, the abnormalities were confirmed again. Towards the end of April, the woman rushed to RML Hospital, where doctors informed her that the placenta had severely restricted blood flow to the foetus. A private foetal medicine specialist later recorded that the foetus’ survival remained “gravely uncertain” even with intensive medical intervention and warned of the possibility of sudden foetal death in the womb.
When the matter first came up before the court on May 4, the Centre informed the Bench that a medical board had already been constituted. The court then directed the board at Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Medical Sciences and RML Hospital to specifically examine whether termination was feasible and what medical consequences could follow.
However, the report submitted by the board stopped short of answering the court’s central question. Instead, it advised the woman to continue the pregnancy under “expectant management according to standard guidelines”.
The court recorded that there appeared to be “complete disregard to statutory mandate under the MTP Act and guidelines thereunder” by the doctors who examined the woman. Justice Kaurav observed that the board failed to consider the petitioner’s repeated concerns regarding foetal abnormalities and the risk of intrauterine death.
During the hearing, the judge orally remarked that the Supreme Court had very clearly said that reproductive autonomy has to be put on a higher pedestal. Addressing the Centre’s counsel, the court further observed that the board was required either to agree with termination or clearly disagree with the private doctors’ opinion, adding that the matter could even be referred to the Delhi Medical Council over what it described as abdication of statutory responsibility.
Under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act, termination beyond 24 weeks is permissible in cases involving substantial foetal abnormalities diagnosed by a duly constituted medical board.
