One major headlines floating on many TV news channels yesterday was that “The Bombay High Court yesterday refused permission to abort a 26-week foetus with a serious heart defect after rejecting the mother's plea to terminate the pregnancy in a case torn between trauma and ethical issues. Now the whole public is divided into two in discussing the rights and wrongs of the above court decision.
26 weeks potentially means the baby has the capacity to live, but will it be born without a complication is the question. The court says it doesn’t have any circumstantial evidences to prove that the child would have serious handicaps in its birth. However the doctors say that the baby had a congenital heart block which could be detected only now. The mother has a valid point in going for abortion now, since the doctor feels this could be identified only after 20 weeks of foetus. Also they claim the baby would need pacemaker from the birth and the parents feel they cannot afford the expenses. While few NGO have come forward to born these expenses if the child is born with such ailment, who can understand the feelings of the parents seeing their child go through such sufferings from day ONE.
The parents feels it is wise to go for abortion (or kill in my word as the court feels it’s a murder of one life) at this stage rather than to see the baby born with limited life capacity. If the parent feels they can’t afford to see this baby born with physical ailments, who has the right to stop them from doing so? As by all means, it’s the parents who are going to look after the child and not any NGO. If the abortion is valid before 20 weeks, what’s wrong in having exception to go for abortion after 20 weeks? But law doesn’t go with feelings; it is right in their own way.
But what would be going through the minds of the parents now? As per court order, if the child is LET to be born, but with all physical problems as per doctors view, who is going to take care of that child? If the parents are willing to sacrifice the child now itself, what love or affection would they have with that child if its born as per court order and not out of their own love /affection? Even if some miracle happens & the child is born without any problem, what if the child comes to know about the decision taken by their parents. Will it have any sort of respect to his / her parents?
While I am no right person to say or judge whether the court order is right / wrong, my thinking towards the entire episode is more towards the actual feelings of the parents rather than the pages of law. More disturbing factor is some section feels that the parents could have easily gone for abortion illegally as many doctors are ready to do such things. But suggesting the parents have gone to court only to gain publicity. What utter nonsense is this? If someone goes to court in a legal way, instead of respecting their courage and faith in law, why people start discouraging such acts?
Anyhow, if not for anybody, I am really eager to know further proceedings on this case. While the entire nation is divided, the central government today clearly said it has no intention to change the current abortion laws in India. So what will the parents do now? Will they re-appeal? What if they have to face the same result? Will the child be born with heart problems? Whoever claims this abortion as illegal, will they come to support the child?
I wish the child should be born without any problem. It might be a loss for the doctor’s prediction & the mother’s decision, but it’s a victory to one happy family in the long run.
26 weeks potentially means the baby has the capacity to live, but will it be born without a complication is the question. The court says it doesn’t have any circumstantial evidences to prove that the child would have serious handicaps in its birth. However the doctors say that the baby had a congenital heart block which could be detected only now. The mother has a valid point in going for abortion now, since the doctor feels this could be identified only after 20 weeks of foetus. Also they claim the baby would need pacemaker from the birth and the parents feel they cannot afford the expenses. While few NGO have come forward to born these expenses if the child is born with such ailment, who can understand the feelings of the parents seeing their child go through such sufferings from day ONE.
The parents feels it is wise to go for abortion (or kill in my word as the court feels it’s a murder of one life) at this stage rather than to see the baby born with limited life capacity. If the parent feels they can’t afford to see this baby born with physical ailments, who has the right to stop them from doing so? As by all means, it’s the parents who are going to look after the child and not any NGO. If the abortion is valid before 20 weeks, what’s wrong in having exception to go for abortion after 20 weeks? But law doesn’t go with feelings; it is right in their own way.
But what would be going through the minds of the parents now? As per court order, if the child is LET to be born, but with all physical problems as per doctors view, who is going to take care of that child? If the parents are willing to sacrifice the child now itself, what love or affection would they have with that child if its born as per court order and not out of their own love /affection? Even if some miracle happens & the child is born without any problem, what if the child comes to know about the decision taken by their parents. Will it have any sort of respect to his / her parents?
While I am no right person to say or judge whether the court order is right / wrong, my thinking towards the entire episode is more towards the actual feelings of the parents rather than the pages of law. More disturbing factor is some section feels that the parents could have easily gone for abortion illegally as many doctors are ready to do such things. But suggesting the parents have gone to court only to gain publicity. What utter nonsense is this? If someone goes to court in a legal way, instead of respecting their courage and faith in law, why people start discouraging such acts?
Anyhow, if not for anybody, I am really eager to know further proceedings on this case. While the entire nation is divided, the central government today clearly said it has no intention to change the current abortion laws in India. So what will the parents do now? Will they re-appeal? What if they have to face the same result? Will the child be born with heart problems? Whoever claims this abortion as illegal, will they come to support the child?
I wish the child should be born without any problem. It might be a loss for the doctor’s prediction & the mother’s decision, but it’s a victory to one happy family in the long run.
3 comments:
Apart from emotional trauma attached with raising a child with congenital disorder, there are financial constraints too; Not everyone can afford expensive medical procedures. What recourse do such parents have?
I dont know wat laws are there for abortion but I personally very strongly feel that in these kinds of exceptional cases parents should be given full right to abort the child if they feel so and this should be a legally accepted abortion. This mercy killing will always be a debatable topic but only the sufferers know how hard it would be to live with such serious deformity. NGOs and all can help financially but not on emotional front. Such parents will die each day seeing their child living an impossible life. Whether to abort or not should entirely be up to parents discretion.
hi,
first time here
this one judgement made me really feel for the parents to be, esp the mother ..
.it is tough on her
how can a mother see her own child suffer ?and for how long...and what about the baby...
it is born to suffer physically from Day 1
the courts are not going to look after the baby...can they stop all those illegeal abortions,female foeticide etc,
Mehtas as dutiful citizens filed a case to abort a baby...and this is what they get the mental agony..
a woman looks forward to deliver her baby..and it is happy phase in her life..on the other side in niketha's case... it is not the happy but agonising period and she is waiting to see a life go thru pain
rights of unborn infant what about the rights of parents?
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