Nikita Anand's case, splashed on TV channels, is not an isolated one. Last year a mentally unstable woman became pregnant after being raped. The NGO taking care of her approached the State Women's Commission for help to abort the baby, but was denied permission.

Last June, Rekha (name changed, 45) was found lying near Rammurthynagar flyover. A journalist, who saw her, informed Humanitarian Hands, an NGO. The NGO then picked her up and took her to their hospital. "We found that she was pregnant, but she was not even aware of her pregnancy. She was perhaps raped," said Ravi Melwani, CEO, Humanitarian Hands.

The NGO then approached the State Women's Commission seeking permission to abort the baby. Rekha was not in a position to give her consent and there were no legal guardians to give consent. "I was in a fix then. So I had a discussion with a panel of doctors and women's organisations. They too said abortion was illegal," said Pramila Nesargi, former chairperson, State Women's Commission.

Rekha gave birth to a baby boy. "The baby was then adopted by the journalist who had informed us about Rekha. If it were not for the adoption, there would have been problems, since the mother was not in a state to take care of the baby," said Melwani.

Affected attitudes 

Doctors say that when a woman is forced to deliver a baby she doesn't want, her attitude towards the child may be affected.

"For instance, when you know that your baby has a congenital disorder, and you cannot abort, your attitude towards the baby may not be cordial. You can be affected, both emotionally and financially. If the mother is unable to meet the cost of treatment of the baby, the situation can get worse," said Dr Padmini Prasad, gynaecologist and sexologist.

Dr Sudha Bhogle, head of psychology department, has similar thoughts. "If the baby is born normal, the mother may suffer from guilt of having tried to abort it. If the baby is born with abnormalities, then the mother may be resentful feelings towards the child," she said.

She added, "Many times  rape victims may reject the baby, but in some cases, the mother feels a sense of ownership and keeps the baby."

Dr Shakeela Shetty, gynaecologist, M S Ramaiah Hospital, feels that the mother's attitude is subjective.

"It is different for different individuals. Some mothers may not have a favourable attitude and some may accept the baby  the way it is," she said.

Down syndrome child accepted

Dr Shakeela and Dr Padmini have both come across cases where parents have accepted the child even when they knew  it will suffer from Down Syndrome. "A woman did not allow us to terminate the pregnancy though she knew  the child will be born of Down Syndrome. She felt it was God's gift and that she should bring up the child," said Dr Shakeela.

Dr Padmini said that older  parents preferred to keep the  baby despite the anomalies. "They might have tried many times to conceive, and once they do, they are ready to keep the baby," he said.

20 to 28 weeks is debatable Dr Padmini feels that if an abnormality is detected after 20 weeks, there should be an  option of aborting the child. "During the 20th week, we conduct a test. If any abnormality is found, we abort the foetus. But the period between 20th and 28th week is debatable, since it is considered infanticide after that," she said.

"If the abortion is conducted by experts in a good hospital, there can be no risk to the mother after the 20th week. In some foreign countries abortion is allowed till the 25th week," she added.

Nikita may not have won the case, but she has stood up for many others like her," she said.

What the Act says
 
Medical termination of pregnancy (MTP) is not allowed if the pregnancy exceeds 20 weeks. Upto 12 weeks of pregnancy, only one doctor can conduct the termination of pregnancy. After 12 weeks and within 20 weeks two doctors are required for the termination of pregnancy.
 
Abortion is allowed when

The pregnancy would involve a risk to the life of the pregnant women.
A risk of grave injury to her physical or mental health.
If the pregnancy is caused by rape.
There exists a substantial risk that, if the child were born it would suffer from some physical or mental abnormalities so as to be seriously handicapped.
Failure of any device or method used by the married couple for the purpose of limiting the number of children.
Risk to the health of the pregnant woman by the reason of her actual or reasonably foreseeable environment.

Sinful

Moulana Riyazur Rahman Rashadi, Jamia mosque: "Abortion in any form is forbidden in Islam. It is 'haraam'. The only circumstance where abortion is allowed is when the mother's life is at risk.

Fr Louis Vedakumar, secretary to Archbishop: The Catholic church does not allow abortion in any form. It is unethical to abort the child even if it is unhealthy. We believe in the mercy of God.

Varadakrishna Das, spokesperson, ISKCON: Conception is the beginning of life. According to the Manusmriti, the foetus is a living entity and has a right to life.