Forced to abort 8 times as husband wanted male child: Mumbai woman files case

MUMBAI: A 40-year-old woman from the city has lodged a complaint against her husband and in-laws, alleging that she was forced by her husband to abort eight times abroad as he wanted a son. The woman is the daughter of a retired judge.
Her complaint says she married a lawyer in 2007. The man’s family members are lawyers, and her sister-in-law is a doctor. A few years after marriage, the man allegedly beat her up, saying he wanted a son.
In 2009, she had a baby girl. In 2011, she got pregnant again but her husband forced her to undergo an abortion, saying she did not want a baby, the woman’s complaint at Dadar police station says.
She told the police that he made her undergo treatment against her wishes to have a child. She said that he started beating her for petty reasons.
The accused took hixs wife abroad for a pre-implantation genetic diagnosis. She was made to undergo medical procedures to determine the sex of the to-be-born child. For this, he allegedly made her take more than 1,500 hormonal and steroid injections.
The test and treatment, banned in India, was carried out abroad without consent and forced the spouse to abort eight times.
“It’s a case of domestic violence and is a very personal matter. We cannot discuss or share any information as the allegations are serious... It would not be proper to disclose the identity of the complainant or the accused,” said a police officer.
A case of harassment for dowry, assault, threatening and gender selection has been registered at Dadar police station and further investigation is on, said the police.