A relieving verdict

A couple of months after the US Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe vs Wade judgement, the Supreme Court of India has expanded the ambit of legal abortions in India to include unmarried women at par with married women. While the US verdict was termed by many as a murder of women's right, India's Supreme Court ruling shines as a beacon of hope. However, the intervention is a delayed one, and is more of relieving nature than transformative. Justice has finally come for unmarried women in India, but only by undoing the five-decade-long injustices they have been facing. The Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971 and the subsequent Rules of 2003 restrict unmarried women — between 20-24 weeks of pregnancy — from aborting their fetus with the help of registered medical practitioners. On the contrary, married women under similar circumstances can be allowed to exercise their abortion rights. This "artificial distinction", the court noted, stands in violation of Article 14 of the Indian Constitution which grants equality to all citizens of the country. The Supreme Court also cited violation of Article 21 of the Indian Constitution — pertaining to Right to Life and Liberty. The rights of reproductive autonomy, dignity and privacy for unmarried women are inherent aspects of Right to Life and Liberty. Reproductive autonomy is closely linked to bodily autonomy, and should be considered a very personal matter of the pregnant woman — married or unmarried. The court rightly noted that the "decision to carry a pregnancy to its full term or terminate it is firmly rooted in the right to bodily autonomy." In fact, the question of bodily autonomy is not restricted to continuance/termination of pregnancy. By denying unmarried women the right to legal abortion, Indian legal system has been perpetuating a veiled rejection of the idea that women can have sex before marriage, because the risks and vulnerabilities resulting from unsafe pregnancies are materially indifferent to marital status of women. The court aptly termed Rule 3B(c) under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act as being "constitutionally unsustainable" — because it indirectly assumes that only married women indulge in sexual activities. Furthermore, the Supreme Court broadened the ambit of reproductive rights to include a "constellation of rights, entitlements and freedoms for women". It may be noted, however, that the Supreme Court verdict is not just limited to rights-based approaches for unmarried women. It will bring far-reaching, tangible benefits for the society at large. Now that abortion is legalised for unmarried women, illegal abortion practices may automatically witness a decline. Prevalence of unsafe abortions in India is not a mystery. It is reported that 67 per cent of abortions in India are unsafe — ranging between 45 per cent to 78 per cent across states. A study by BMJ Global Health has found that young girls — in the age bracket 15-19 — were at the highest risk of dying from an abortion-related complication. With legalisation of abortions, things stand to change to some extent. Now the challenge ahead for the government will be to incorporate ground-level healthcare workers to raise awareness among people about the legality of abortions for unmarried women. Without adequate social awareness, the Supreme Court's intervention is less likely to bring in a broader change because the legal hurdle was just one side of the coin. Societal hurdles in patriarchal India, particularly in rural areas, are equally paramount. Unless social change is facilitated, benefits will remain limited to high-class urban pockets. Morbidity and mortality on account of unsafe abortions need to stop by the earliest, across the country. In sum total, the Supreme Court ruling has recognised the due rights of unmarried women, paved the way for systematic healthcare assistance for them and can potentially prevent them from falling into the trap of illegal abortion practitioners. The judiciary has played its part. Now is the time for governments and the people to step in. A safe and equal world for all is what we should strive for.