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The mother of a minor girl has filed a petition before the Delhi High Court seeking direction allowing termination of pregnancy of her minor daughter without reporting the same to the police.
A woman has moved the Delhi High Court seeking medical termination of pregnancy for her unmarried & minor daughter aged 16 years and 4 months who is carrying a single ongoing live pregnancy of 17 weeks and 5 days without reporting to police as the pregnancy resulted from a consensual relationship.
A bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad has sought responses of the Health & Family Welfare Department and other respondents over the issue.
The plea sought termination of pregnancy under section 3 (2) (a) (i) read with 3 (4) (a) of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 197 without reporting the matter to the local police required under section 19 (1) of The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 as the said pregnancy has arisen from consensual & close relationship.
Advocate Amit Mishra appearing for the mother submitted that the girl herself doesn't want to continue the said pregnancy as she is not physically and mentally prepared to raise this child and continuing the pregnancy would cause immense injury to her physical and mental health.
It was submitted that no government or private hospital is terminating the said pregnancy without reporting the matter as per the mandate of section 19 (1) POCSO but the petitioner being the mother and legal guardian of her minor daughter wants termination of ongoing pregnancy without reporting the said matter ensuing social stigma, ostracization & harassment.
"Even the petitioner is very poor & uneducated to raise this child as she is having a total of five children and the husband of the petitioner is no more. The petitioner does the household work and has a very meager income to raise her family. In such circumstances, continuing the ongoing pregnancy for the daughter of the petitioner would cause much immense mental agony and physical sufferings not only for the daughter rather for the whole family," the plea stated.
The Court has listed the matter for further hearing on September 20, 2022.
(Party's Details have been withheld)
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