Gujarat High Court Directs Medical Termination of Pregnancy for 13-Year-Old Rape Victim [Read Order]

Gujarat: The Gujarat High Court has directed the medical termination of pregnancy for a 13-year-old rape victim who is 33 weeks pregnant, emphasizing the importance of considering the victim’s young age and her future well-being.

Justice Nirzar S. Desai passed the order while hearing a petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, seeking permission for the termination of the minor victim’s pregnancy.

Following the court’s earlier order dated May 8, 2025, the victim was examined at Shri Pandit Dindayal Upadhyaya General Hospital, Rajkot, by a panel of specialists including a gynecologist, physician, psychiatrist, pediatrician, and radiologist, who submitted their medical opinion on May 10, 2025.

Highlighting the medical findings, the court stated:
“The medical opinion indicates that the panel of doctors have opined that the MTP can be performed after evaluation and correction of anemia, with due consideration of the high risk of complications for the victim related to the termination of pregnancy, and the fetal complications of prematurity, subject to the consent of the legal guardian.”

In its directive, the court instructed:
“The In-charge Medical Officer and Medical Superintendent, PDU General Hospital, Rajkot, are directed to perform the MTP procedure, considering the young age of the victim, after taking all possible care and caution and ensuring the availability of all necessary medical facilities, including blood arrangements, at the earliest—preferably today itself.”

The court also emphasized the importance of informed consent, stating:
“The parents/guardians of the victim girl must be made to understand the risks associated with MTP, and their consent should be obtained in a language they understand or in the vernacular language. Their signatures must be recorded to explicitly acknowledge that they are consenting to the procedure despite being made aware of the associated risks.”

The court further directed that experts from various medical disciplines whose presence may be required during the procedure should be kept available, and the procedure must be performed with the utmost care and caution.

The victim was the subject of an FIR registered on April 29, 2025, with ‘B’ Division Police Station, Rajkot City, for offences punishable under Sections 351(3), 64(2)(m), 65(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Sections 12, 4, 6, and 8 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

Mr. P.V. Patadiya, Advocate, appeared for the Petitioner, and Ms. Megha Chitaliya, Public Prosecutor, appeared for the Respondent-State.

Case Title: ABC (Victim) vs. State of Gujarat & Ors.

 [Read Order]