Miscarriage of Foetus or Justice??????????

The miscarriage of foetus of Niketa Mehta, who was recently refused permission by Bombay High Court, has raised the eye-brows of various critics. The discussions about amending the existing Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act (MTPA) had started after an application was filed for the abortion of the foetus whose healthy life was doubtful. Various views had been published while the matter was still sub-judice. The court had to be very careful as it would have set up a precedent which could have been abused by our male dominated society due to the hype given to this case. The opinions of various high profile doctors, working with reputed hospitals, were sought and it was decided that the reports had not ruled out a normal life with medical aid for the foetus. The decision of the court was legally right but the practicalities of the case should have been considered. After the denial of the required permission, the couple stated that they could have gone to a quack rather than opting for a legal route. This statement was rightly highlighted by the media as it reflected the highly prevalent mal-practices of female foeticide and even infanticide in India. After the mis-carriage at a local Kandivali clinic it was stated by the husband that the court could'nt permit them but 'Bhagwan ne Theek Kiya'. The provisions of MTPA prohibit abortion after a period of 20 weeks. After this period, it is dangerous for the life of a woman to abort and also the reason for this prohibition is the practice of female foeticide after determing the sex of he child. This miscarriage which has come naturally by 'Bhagwan' has raised many questions in our existing legal and social system. Any law which is formed to curb certain mal-practices has its side-effects as well. The sufferings of the couple can be quoted as an example of this. It is doubtful whether the principle, that ninety-nine guilty should be allowed to go rather than punishing one innocent, holds good in this case.........