Calcutta HC approves most-delayed abortion in India at 34 weeks

A Bengal resident has been allowed to medically terminate her pregnancy at 34-weeks by the Calcutta High Court, which makes it the most delayed legally sanctioned abortion in India.

The Economic Times reported that the 37-year-old woman was given the legal sanction on the grounds that the fetus had spina bifada, which is an incurable disorder.

The report said that the North Kolkata resident had moved the High Court in early February stating that many doctors had ruled that the birth defect wouldn’t allow the baby’s spine and spinal cord to form properly.

The court heard that a baby born with this condition cannot move or perform normal bodily functions and could die within weeks. Her abortion was also approved by a board of doctors from a local hospital.

In August last year the Bombay high court had allowed a 20-year-old woman to medically terminate her 33-week pregnancy because the fetus suffered from a group of brain malformations.