Summary
An unmarried woman, 22 weeks pregnant from a consensual relationship, was refused interim relief by the Delhi High Court because Rule 3B of the MTP Rules lists no such category for termination between 20 and 24 weeks. This Court allowed termination at AIIMS and then decided the law. Read purposively with the 2021 amendment (which replaced 'married woman or her husband' with 'any woman or her partner') and Articles 14 and 21, Rule 3B covers every woman who faces a change of material circumstances during the pregnancy. The words 'change of marital status (widowhood and divorce)' in Rule 3B(c) are illustrative. Excluding unmarried women would be unconstitutional. For MTP purposes only, 'rape' includes marital rape, with no FIR or proof needed. Doctors need not name a minor in a POCSO report if she and her guardian ask, and must not impose extra-legal conditions.
Issues
- Whether Rule 3B of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Rules, 2003, read with Section 3(2)(b) of the MTP Act, allows unmarried or single women to terminate pregnancies of 20 to 24 weeks.
- Whether 'sexual assault or rape' in Rule 3B(a) includes rape of a wife by her husband for the purposes of the MTP Act.
- How the duty to report under Section 19(1) of the POCSO Act is to be reconciled with a minor's access to termination under Rule 3B(b).
- What the constitutional rights to reproductive autonomy, dignity and privacy require of the State.
Provisions considered
- Section 3(2), 3(3) and Explanations, Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971As amended in 2021, the Act extended the contraceptive-failure presumption to 'any woman or her partner'. It permits regard to the woman's actual or foreseeable environment, and 'mental health' is read broadly. The Act is beneficial legislation and must be purposively construed. (¶¶ 13, 14, 15, 51, 52, 53, 61, 64)
- Rule 3B, Medical Termination of Pregnancy Rules, 2003The listed categories share a change in the woman's material circumstances. Rule 3B(c)'s examples of widowhood and divorce are illustrative, and the rule extends to all women, married or unmarried, facing such a change. (¶¶ 68, 69, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94)
- Rule 3B(a), Medical Termination of Pregnancy Rules, 2003'Sexual assault or rape' includes marital rape solely for the MTP Act and Rules, without affecting Exception 2 to Section 375 IPC. No FIR, trial or proof is required, since the woman's allegation is enough. (¶¶ 71, 73, 74, 75, 76)
- Section 19(1), Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012Harmonised with the MTP Act: at the request of the minor and her guardian, a doctor reporting under Section 19(1) need not disclose the minor's identity, in the report or in any resulting criminal proceedings. (¶¶ 79, 80, 81)
- Articles 14 and 21, Constitution of IndiaConfining Rule 3B to married women would discriminate on marital status. Reproductive and decisional autonomy, dignity and privacy entitle every woman to choose whether to continue a pregnancy. (¶¶ 96, 98, 99, 108, 110, 116, 118, 121)
Held
- Doctors' fear of prosecution and the stigma faced by unmarried women push women towards unsafe abortions. Doctors must not insist on extra-legal conditions such as family consent, documents or court orders, because only the woman's consent (or her guardian's, where the law requires it) matters. (¶¶ 18, 20, 22, 23, 26, 27, 29)
- Read purposively against changing social realities and laws treating married and unmarried women alike, and given the 2021 amendments, the MTP Act draws no distinction based on marital status. (¶¶ 31, 36, 38, 43, 47, 48, 51, 53, 56, 58)
- Rule 3B is meant for women whose circumstances change during pregnancy. It extends to all women facing a change in material circumstances, including unmarried and single women, each case being judged on its own facts. (¶¶ 69, 89, 92, 93, 94)
- Marital rape falls within 'rape' in Rule 3B(a) for MTP purposes, and survivors need not prove the rape. A doctor may withhold a minor's identity in a POCSO report on request, so that minors are not driven to unsafe abortions. (¶¶ 74, 75, 76, 81)
- Because the purposive reading saves Rule 3B, its validity need not be decided. The reading also accords with India's obligations under the ICCPR, ICESCR and CEDAW, and the State must take positive steps to make reproductive healthcare accessible, affordable and non-discriminatory. The PCPNDT Act is not diluted. (¶¶ 118, 121, 122, 128, 133, 134, 135)
Result
Appeal disposed of. The appellant had already been permitted to terminate her pregnancy at AIIMS, and the transferred writ petition was disposed of in terms of the Court's interpretation of the MTP Act and Rule 3B.