For the 15-year-old girl who was raped repeatedly and threatened into silence by her former boyfriend and his mother, what matters most is finding justice and receiving sensitive care from the authorities. However, so far, she has found neither. A whole week after it came to light that she was three months pregnant, not only have the doctors failed to carry out her wishes for a Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP), but they have not even carried out the essential DNA test that could prove the charges against the accused.

The doctors had a five-day window in which they could have met the minor’s wishes before she was diagnosed with chicken pox. Now it could take a couple of weeks before she is well enough to undergo an MTP — a delay that could cost her heavily, perhaps even make it impossible to terminate the pregnancy.