HIV positive pregnt rape victim seeks compensation

New Delhi, May 8: A pregnt rape victim on Monday sought compensation from the Bihar government after doctors at AIIMS said in their report that her pregncy could not be termited due to its advanced stage.

The woman, who is also HIV positive, had moved the Supreme Court last week after the Pat High Court rejected her plea for medical termition of pregncy (MTP) in the 17th week of her pregncy on the grounds that the termition would involve major surgical procedure.

However, the victim’s counsel Vrinda Grover told the apex court that the Pat High Court came to the conclusion that surgical procedure may be hazardous to the victim as there is compelling state interest in keeping the unborn child alive.

The victim was examined by a medical board on the directions of the Pat High Court in March this year.

The Medical Termition of Pregncy (MTP) Act, 1971 (amended in 2002) allows abortion upto 20 weeks of pregncy.

In response to her plea, a bench comprising of Justices Dipak Misra, A.M. Khanwilkar directed a medical board at All India Institute for Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in the tiol capital to examine if it was safe to termite her pregncy.

While directing the medical examition of the victim, the top court had observed: “We are concerned with saving the life of a destitute who was sexually assaulted and is suffering from serious medical ailment, not to undergo further suffering.”

The medical board at AIIMS opined that MTP could not be performed as she was now in the advance stage of pregncy.

The victim was raped in Pat when she ventured out of the shelter home, Shanti Kutir. She is in the care of NGO Koshish.

When she found out earlier this year that she was pregnt, she decided to termite the foetus. (IANS)