The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on Thursday approached the Delhi High Court challenging a single judge’s June 30 order that allowed a 16-year-old rape survivor to terminate her 27-week pregnancy. The medical institution contended that terminating the pregnancy at such an advanced stage could jeopardise the minor’s future reproductive health.
A division bench of Chief Justice D.K. Upadhyaya and Justice Anish Dayal heard the matter and directed the presence of the minor’s mother and a member of the AIIMS medical board during the resumed hearing later in the day. The court also observed that advising a rape survivor to carry forward an unwanted pregnancy could severely affect her mental health.
Representing AIIMS, Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati submitted that while the girl understandably does not want to continue the pregnancy, the medical board had concerns about the impact of termination on her future fertility. “Your Lordships are the parens patriae for this young girl. We will do everything best for her, but there are real medical concerns,” she submitted.
Under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act, termination beyond 24 weeks is permitted only if there is a grave threat to the mother’s life or if the fetus suffers from serious abnormalities. The AIIMS petition cited these statutory restrictions while objecting to the single judge’s order.
The minor had approached the high court after doctors refused termination citing the 24-week limit under the MTP Act. The court was informed that the pregnancy resulted from sexual assault in March 2025 and that the girl had been previously assaulted in 2024. The pregnancy was discovered only in June, by which time it had crossed the statutory threshold.
Despite the medical board’s recommendation against termination, the single judge had allowed it, citing precedents where courts permitted termination even beyond 27 and 33 weeks. The order had also directed AIIMS to maintain records and preserve fetal tissue for investigative purposes.
The bench is expected to decide whether AIIMS can withhold the termination procedure in light of legal and medical constraints or whether the rights and mental well-being of the minor survivor should take precedence.
