KOLKATA: Following Calcutta High Court's intervention, a medical board has allowed a 21-year-old rape survivor to terminate her 25-week-old pregnancy. The procedure will be carried out on Wednesday after the HC on Monday directed that the termination be done without delay.
The survivor's counsel, Kanchan Jaju, on Monday, told Justice Amrita Sinha , that the woman would be comfortable terminating her pregnancy at IPGMER.
The woman was raped by her cousin on the intervening night of Dec 3 and 4 last year, on the day of her father's birthday, and a complaint was registered at the Sinthi Police Station in March 2025. The survivor's counsel told the court on April 30 that she was not in a psychological state to continue with the pregnancy. "The accused, who is a blood relative, threatened her with dire consequences if she disclosed the incident to anyone. The petitioner stated that due to trauma, fear of social stigma and constant threat from the accused, she was unable to report the incident immediately," it was stated in the writ petition.
The accused was arrested in April and remanded in police custody till April 12. But the lower court granted him bail on April 17. It was after the survivor was referred for medical examination following the registration of the FIR that she learnt of her pregnancy. By then, she was 22 weeks along and at the time of filing the petition, 25 weeks.
The case was initially heard by Justice Gaurang Kanth, who had directed for the formation of a medical board to assess whether the survivor could be allowed to terminate her pregnancy even after surpassing the cutoff of 24 weeks.
According to the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971 (as amended in the year 2021), in cases of rape survivors, lawful medical termination of pregnancy (MTP) is permissible up to 24 weeks of gestation. If the gestation age limit of the foetus is more than 24 weeks, it can be terminated only in cases involving foetal abnormalities.
Justice Kanth had directed for the board to give due diligence to her mental and physical health, and the condition of the foetus. The survivor's counsel had submitted she was "under immense psychological distress, exhibiting symptoms of anxiety, depression and trauma". It was submitted that the continuation of the pregnancy would severely affect her mental health. A report was filed by the MSVP of IPGMER and the board agreed on the termination of the pregnancy.
The survivor's counsel, Kanchan Jaju, on Monday, told Justice Amrita Sinha , that the woman would be comfortable terminating her pregnancy at IPGMER.
The woman was raped by her cousin on the intervening night of Dec 3 and 4 last year, on the day of her father's birthday, and a complaint was registered at the Sinthi Police Station in March 2025. The survivor's counsel told the court on April 30 that she was not in a psychological state to continue with the pregnancy. "The accused, who is a blood relative, threatened her with dire consequences if she disclosed the incident to anyone. The petitioner stated that due to trauma, fear of social stigma and constant threat from the accused, she was unable to report the incident immediately," it was stated in the writ petition.
The accused was arrested in April and remanded in police custody till April 12. But the lower court granted him bail on April 17. It was after the survivor was referred for medical examination following the registration of the FIR that she learnt of her pregnancy. By then, she was 22 weeks along and at the time of filing the petition, 25 weeks.
The case was initially heard by Justice Gaurang Kanth, who had directed for the formation of a medical board to assess whether the survivor could be allowed to terminate her pregnancy even after surpassing the cutoff of 24 weeks.
According to the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971 (as amended in the year 2021), in cases of rape survivors, lawful medical termination of pregnancy (MTP) is permissible up to 24 weeks of gestation. If the gestation age limit of the foetus is more than 24 weeks, it can be terminated only in cases involving foetal abnormalities.
Justice Kanth had directed for the board to give due diligence to her mental and physical health, and the condition of the foetus. The survivor's counsel had submitted she was "under immense psychological distress, exhibiting symptoms of anxiety, depression and trauma". It was submitted that the continuation of the pregnancy would severely affect her mental health. A report was filed by the MSVP of IPGMER and the board agreed on the termination of the pregnancy.
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