The Supreme Court has issued a notice to centre on PIL seeking abortion for a 10-year-old rape survivor. (File)
The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to the Centre on a plea seeking permission to allow a 10-year old rape survivor to terminate her pregnancy. A bench of Chief Justice J S Khehar and Justice D Y Chandrachud also asked the member secretary of Chandigarh Legal Services Authority to assist it as an amicus curiae and get the rape survivor examined by a board of doctors on July 26. The medical examination that will entail risk assessment of the case will take place at PGI Chandigarh.
The apex court has also asked the member secretary to make proper transportation arrangements for the rape survivor and one of her parents. The PIL was filed after a Chandigarh district court did not allow the 26-week-old-pregnant rape survivor to undergo abortion.
The court has fixed the next hearing in the case on July 28, and has asked for the medical report to be presented in a sealed cover before it.
The petition, filed by advocate Alakh Alok Srivastava, has also sought appropriate guidelines to be framed by the top
court to set up a permanent medical board in each district of India for expedient termination of pregnancies in exceptional cases involving child rape survivors under the best possible medical facilities.
“Medical experts have categorically opined that if the 10-year-old rape survivor is forced to give birth through normal delivery or C-section, it may be fatal to the life of the girl as well her child,” the petition filed through advocate Kedar Nath Tripathy said.
