Click to play videoNew Delhi: As the Mehta abortion case snowballs into a nation-wide medical and ethical debate, many questions remain unanswered. Who should have the right to decide if the child should be aborted or not? Should it be the parents, or the law enforcement agencies?
Medical and legal experts give their views on the case.
The Mehtas' foetus is into its 25th week, but it has congenital heart problems and which is the reason for the parents not willing to give birth to the child.
"All I want is a healthy child, whatever the sex, the child should be healthy," says petitioner Niketa Mehta.
For this very wish, the Mehta couple has initiated a legal challenge to the 37-year-old abortion law of the country, which prevents abortion after the 20th week.
"It is going to be a trauma for the child and the parents. Who will look after my ailing child? Who will I ask for money repeatedly?" demands Niketa.
And unless the pregnancy constitutes a health risk for the mother, their plea to allow them to terminate a 24-week-old pregnancy has triggered a big debate in medical and legal circles.
"If the child is born with a serious medical problem, is it fair to allow the child to suffer through out his life?" questions Supreme Court advocate, Priya Hingorani.
Foetal abnormalities can be detected in the first trimester of pregnancy by simple ultrasounds, but congenital heart defects and other chromosomal anomalies can at best be confirmed only by the 20th to 24th week.
However, an abortion at this stage is not only illegal, it's also dangerous for the health of the mother.
"There was no law in place for the court to order termination of the pregnancy in a situation like this. The government can consider making this change in the future, but what can we do now?" ask Justice Majmudar and Justice Amjad Sayed.
Also the probability of the foetus surviving nine months in the Mehta case is very low. If the child is born it will have to be fitted with a pacemaker. Also it doesn't end there, as the pacemakers will have to be replaced every four years.
One of the main questions which surrounds the Mehta case is should the laws in India be amended? Or just be made flexible giving the choice to terminate the pregnancy to the doctor and the mother?
Apollo's head of foetal med, Anita Kaul is of the view that the law should be changed.
"I think the law of our country is completely wrong, as it really needs to streamline the cases where help is required as in the West," she says.
Around two lakh infants are born with heart defects in the country and 90 per cent cases end with the death of the child within the first year, given the situation.
The decision is best left in the hands of the court given that the foetus is unlikely to bloom into a healthy child.
Abortion Laws in Other Countries |
|
 United Kingdom: In England, Scotland and Wales it's legal to abort up to the 24th week of the pregnancy. |
| Australia: Abortion is legal in Australia. It remains a subject of state law rather than national law. |
| Italy: Abortion in Italy is legal on demand through the 12th week of pregnancy. |
| Ireland: Abortion is illegal in Ireland, but people are allowed to travel overseas to obtain abortions. |
| Poland: Abortion is legal only for strict medical reasons in Poland. |
| Spain: One can terminate the pregnancy legally upto 12 weeks in cases of rape, deformed baby, and danger to mother's life or mental health. |
| Switzerland: Abortion is illegal in Switzerland unless the mother's life is in danger. |
| Germany: Terminating a pregnancy is legal, though the mother must present a certificate showing that she has consulted a counselor first. |
| Denmark: An abortion is legal on demand in Denmark through the 12th week of pregnancy. |
| Romania: Abortions are only legal through the 12th week of pregnancy. |
| Source: Associated Press |
(For updates you can share with your friends, follow IBNLive on Facebook, Twitter and Google+)
 |
 |
 |
|
displayed with permission. Use of the CNN name and/or logo on or as part of CNN-IBN does not derogate from the intellectual property rights of Cable News Network in respect of them.