The supreme court on Thursday passed the decision that all women have the right to safe and legal abortion and that distinguishing between married and unmarried women is ‘unconstitutional.’ On the other hand, The Supreme Court ruled on Thursday in a landmark decision that unmarried women have the right to seek an abortion during their pregnancy.
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Meanwhile, The Supreme Court ruled that a woman’s marital status cannot be used to deny her the right to abort an unwanted pregnancy. “Unmarried and single women have the right to abort until 24 weeks of pregnancy under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act and rules,” it added.
Best gift to Indian women on International Safe Abortion Day!!
The Honorable Supreme court decides that “All women are entitled to safe and legal #abortionrights“. This judgment becomes more significant in the backdrop of The US Sup court decision of overturning Roe v. Wade.— Dr.Amol Kolhe (@kolhe_amol) September 29, 2022
The Supreme Court further stated, “Meaning of rape must be held, including marital rape, for purposes of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, as it perpetuates the stereotype that only married women engage in sexual activity.
In accordance with Rule 3B, certain groups of women may have their pregnancies terminated between 20 and 24 weeks of gestation, including those who have experienced sexual assault or rape, are minors, or have experienced a change in marital status (such as widowhood or divorce), are physically or mentally ill, or have a foetal malformation.
Coincidently, today (Thursday) happens to be International Safe Abortion Day. According to sources, because safe abortion is not widely available, 45% of all abortions performed worldwide are unsafe. Up to 47,000 deaths worldwide due to unsafe abortion remain a major public health concern, and hundreds of thousands of survivors continue to experience long-term complications like infertility and chronic pain. 97% of these unsafe abortions occur in Latin America, South and Central Asia, and sub-Saharan Africa.