Supreme Court: Unmarried women are entitled to safe and legal abortion

The Court ruled that the exclusion of unmarried women from the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Rules is unconstitutional.

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"All women are entitled to safe and legal abortion", the court observed.

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"The rights of reproductive autonomy give an unmarried women similar rights as a married women", the Court added.

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Section 3(2)(b) of the MTP Act allows women to undergo abortion after 20-24 weeks.

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Therefore, including only married and excluding unmarried woman will be violates Article 14 of the Constitution, the court noted.

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