The court upheld that a pregnant woman's right to terminate a pregnancy beyond the statutory limit can be granted due to severe foetal health abnormalities affecting her mental health, interpreting the MTP Act liberally.

JUDGMENT

1. Present writ petition has been preferred by the Petitioner seeking the following reliefs:

"a. For a writ of mandamus or any other writ, order, directing the Respondents to allow the Petitioner to undergo Medical Termination of the Pregnancy.

b. For an order directing the Respondent No. 3 for setting up an expert panel of doctors to assess the pregnancy and offer MTP to the petitioner in need of the procedure beyond the prescribed 20 weeks limit.

c. For any other order/direction that this Hon`ble Court may deem fit."

2. As per the case set out in the petition, Petitioner is 33 years old and has been undergoing regular check-ups from the 5th week of her pregnancy. From the ultrasonography report dated 31.10.2021, conducted during the 20th week of gestation, it was revealed that there was choroid plexus cyst in the left lateral ventricle of the foetus. However, since the foetus was only 20 weeks old, foetal echocardiography was not performed. On completion of 24 weeks, foetal Echo-Doppler test was done on 02.12.2021 and various anomalies were found in the heart of the foetus, viz., Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) with Absent Pulmonary Valve Syndrome (APV), presence of Pulmonary Stenosis and Regurgitation with Narrow Pulmonary Valves, Dilated Branch Pulmonary Artery and Large Malaligned VSD with overriding of Aorta.

3. Thereafter, Petitioner consulted many Doctors, including Paediatric Cardiologists, in different hospitals and as per the last medical opinion received by her on 15.12.2021, infants born with condition of TOF have 50 per cent chance of survival in the very first year of their birth and even if they do survive the first year, repeated surgeries have to be carried out and success of the surgeries depends upon the stimuli of the baby to the environment. Since the permissible limit of 24 weeks under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971 (hereinafter referred to as `MTP Act') as amended by the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Act, 2021 was over, Petitioner approached this Court seeking a direction to the Respondents to allow her to undergo medical termination of pregnancy.

4. On 22.12.2021, this Court directed Respondent No.3/AIIMS to constitute a Medical Board at the earliest to examine the Petitioner, who had on the said date completed 28 weeks of pregnancy and after examination, to furnish its report regarding the necessity and feasibility of medical termination of the pregnancy. Relevant part of the order reads as follows:

"2. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that as per the medical opinion based on the petitioner`s ultrasound report and other medical test, it has been found that the petitioner`s foetus is suffering from various serious deformities and therefore, has very grim chances of survival. Learned counsel for the therefore prays that the petitioner be permitted to undergo medical termination of her pregnancy.

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