The Kerala High Court has allowed medical termination of 24 weeks’ pregnancy of a 15-year-old victim under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act at SAT Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram.
The court has directed the superintendent of the hospital to take immediate measures to constitute a medical team for conducting the termination. The court passed the order recently on a petition filed by the parent of the victim.
It ordered that an undertaking be filed by the petitioner authorising the hospital to conduct the termination at her own risk. The court order said that if the baby is born alive, the hospital shall ensure that the baby is offered the best medical treatment available.
The court made it clear that if the parent of the victim is not willing to assume the responsibility of the baby, the State and its agencies shall assume the full responsibility and offer medical support and facilities to the child.
The medical board had reported that according to the neonatologist, at this gestational age the chance of neonatal survival was about 30%.
