Study of Abortion Laws Through The Lens of Women\'s Rights

  • Ishani Mishra
  • June 22, 2020

Content :

The Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Bill, 2020 was drafted with a noble and liberal objective – to promote increased preference for and access to safe abortions in India. It also sought to provide greater recognition to reproductive rights and women’s bodily autonomy. Although the earlier MTP Act of 1971 was progressive in substance, the recent amendment sought to mould Indian abortion law in line with social and humanitarian concerns, that have been gaining impetus worldwide. However, there still remain gaps in the legal framework, in addition to a poor record in awareness and implementation. Despite a series of policy measures, Action Plans, judicial rulings and community effort, abortion remains a taboo in the lowest to the highest rungs of Indian society. There is a need for major reform in the execution of the MTP Act and the associated Rules and Regulations. This paper seeks to identify the gaps in the existing Abortion Law in India, and the barriers in its effective enforcement. It seeks to measure the extent of success of the MTP Act of 1971, with the aid of government data and studies conducted by several State and Non-State Institutions. It further seeks to analyse the causes of failure in execution at the grassroots level and the possible ways of misuse of the Act. Through the data collected, it was discovered that almost 10 women die of unsafe abortions every day and that around 50% of abortions occur outside medical facilities. These grim statistics are aggravated by the rampant illiteracy and lack of family planning in rural areas. This paper proposes methods to fill the existing void in the legal framework and to facilitate increased legal and social awareness on abortions. It identifies the inadequacies in the newly approved MTP(Amendment) Bill, 2020 and suggests possible remedies for a more comprehensive framework. It further suggests ways to tackle corruption, misuse and malpractices in the medical profession, to counter the menace of maternal mortalities from unsafe abortions.