Teenage pregnancy and abortion

Research questions

The main reason behind making this research paper is sought to cover all the possible answers to the major question related to Abortion: –

1. Teenage pregnancy and the impact of abortion on them as well as on society?
2. Medical problems and the mental state were not fit for pregnancy?
3. What are the current laws related to abortion?
4. What are the feasible solutions to change the mentality of society after getting an abortion for married or unmarried women?

Research objects

The primary objective that is sought to be achieved through the making of this research paper is to synthesize a legal, social, pragmatic, and future-oriented formula that shall have a significant constructive and positive impact on Abortion.

Introduction: The Constitution doesn’t cover birth control, health care, interracial marriage, modern media, or even women’s or reproductive rights

A century from now, there is no age limit for marriage because they do not know about the bad outcomes of teenage pregnancy. So, in 1978 the age of girl marriage shifted from 15-18 years of age by amending the erstwhile Sharda Act of 1929. There is a lot of data and reports which talk about the incapability of a girl to be pregnant in her adolescent age, and that report also talks about the harmful disease affects the girl’s body when they are in her pregnant state.

The U.S. is one of the most highlighted countries where the maximum number of pregnancies and abortions of teenage girls take place and developing countries also have a lot of contributions in teenage pregnancy and abortion. Even WHO (World Health Organization) also talks about the health effects and mental trauma which is caused by teenage pregnancy.

Broadly speaking, reproductive right is not a right that is controlled by others it is a right of an individual which is completely dependent on discretionary power. Article 21 talks about the Right to life which also include the right to make good decisions. Laws are for our betterment; no laws are there which restrict our decision-making power and if it does then it is a violation of Article 21 of the Indian Constitution.

“The right of all couples and individuals to decide freely and responsibly the number, spacing, and timing of their children”[1]. This is only applicable to those couples the one who are of legal age of in a marriage but strictly prohibits those the one who are not of legal age of marriage and if they are forced to do so then guardians are strictly liable under the Children Marriage restriction Act, 1929.

“Empirically, courts have been at the forefront of expanding, protecting, and promoting reproductive rights”[2].

Current situation of reproductive rights of a woman in India

India was among the countries in the world to develop new laws and policies for the betterment of the pregnant girl or a woman. Indian laws differentiate between the reproductive rights of a married woman the one who is of legal age of marriage and the one who is not yet acquired her legal age of marriage.

So, according to the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 2021 teenagers cannot terminate their pregnancy without the permission of their guardian, and this rule affects the decision-making power and also violates Article 21 of the Indian Constitution and also it violates Article 14 of the Indian Constitution.

Laws talk about termination of pregnancy when there is a serious medical condition that is covered in sec. 3 (b) (1), 3 (b) (2) of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 2021. But it does not include the mental state of mind, if a teenage girl gets pregnant then she is not in a mental state of mind to give a birth to a child and even she also is not able to take care of it. If a girl is in school and she gets pregnant after the existence of the child her whole life will spoil. So, there needs to be change in laws.

Despite a national law punishing the marriage of girls under the age of 18, and policies and schemes guaranteeing women maternal health care, in practice India continues to have the world’s highest rate of child marriage and 20% of all maternal deaths.

Judicial recognition of reproductive rights

There is a lot of judgment that talks about the termination of pregnancy under sec. 3 (b) (1) and sec. 3 (b) (2) of the Medical Termination Act, 2021 by married women and also including the un- married women but it does not include the termination of pregnancy of a teenage girl. According to the new laws, minors can terminate their pregnancy under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 2021. Only in one case when she gets pregnant after being sexually assaulted.

Some judgment needs to be changed; there is the “U.S. Case of Florida where a sixteen-year-old girl was refused to terminate her pregnancy by the court”[3].

“Supreme Court of America gave the decision that no woman is allowed to terminate her pregnancy and abort her baby. Since then, this case of the teenager wanting to abort her child is now gaining popularity amidst the protests for women’s legal rights in the United States of America.”[4]

Teenage pregnancy and abortion

“United Nations is one of the highest teenage birth rates among the industrialized nation”. According to the 2014 data 2,49,078 birth took place from teenage girls which are mainly between the age of 15–19-year-old (birth rate of 24.2 per 1000 girls). Factors affecting abortion in the US are: –

• Lack of knowledge of teenagers
• Modern culture of the United States
• Drug and Violence
• Homelessness
• Foster care
• Living in rural areas

Most importantly Rape is also a leading factor in teenage abortion. Sec. 3 subclause 4 of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act clearly states that a minor girl who is below 18 years of age has no right to terminate her pregnancy. Minor girls can only terminate their pregnancy after getting consent from their legal guardians.

Child marriage plays a major role in teenage pregnancy, according to the 2019 data 15-19 years of girls get pregnant. Teenage pregnancy causes a deleterious impact on the body of a minor girl.

Due to early pregnancy mostly the girls between age 10-19 faces a higher risk of eclampsia, puerperal endometritis, and systemic infections which later causes a high risk of low birth weight, preterm birth, and severe neonatal condition and this infection mainly occur in the age of 20-24 years.

It is just a matter of consent

Most of the time sec. 3 sub clause 4 of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act is in question whether it applies to a married teenage girl. According to the laws, married women can terminate their pregnancy by their own will without taking any prior permission from their husbands and guardian within 20-24 weeks. But there is no specification or mention of termination of pregnancy of a married teenage girl.

Laws restrict the married teenage girl not to terminate the pregnancy without taking prior permission from her guardian. Law differentiates in this matter between a married girl below 18 years of age and a married woman above 18 years of age which is a violation of Article 14 and Article 21 of the Indian Constitution.

It’s a time to change laws and mentality regarding the Termination of Teenage Pregnancy. Why teenage girl has no right to terminate the pregnancy of her own will? Why there are so many restrictions for teenage pregnant girls? Now laws need to change in India, we have our properly formed constitution which gives equal rights to everyone and equal representation in society, and are constitution also gives us right of Right to life.

But why does society see a pregnant teenage girl differently? Here proper education plays a very important role, lack of understanding and lack of backward mentality creates discrimination.

In simple words, if a woman is not physically, mentally, and biologically prepared for giving birth to a child then how can she give birth. Most backward thinker people think that a girl starts her maturation cycle at just age when she was 12 years old it doesn’t mean that she can give birth to a child.

If a girl is not physically and mentally prepared that means that a girl is not ready to give birth to a child. Due to this lack of knowledge and backward thinkers 70,000 adolescent mothers (aged between 15–19 years old) die each year and the reason behind this death is that the women are not physically prepared for giving birth to a child.

“The fifth annual State of the World’s Mother Report found that 13 million births take place (worldwide) each year are to women age under 20 and 90% of birth take place in developing countries and this pregnancy and childbirth took the life of girls aged between 15-19 years”[5].

How education plays a better perspective to see a society in a different manner? When a teenage girl is pregnant then what are the factors that play a vital role behind her pregnancy the main reason is lack of education. According to the data teenage pregnancy is higher in rural areas (8%) as compared to urban areas (4%).

According to the Nation Family Survey, 7% of all the women under 15-19 years of age bore children in 2019-21. Rural areas have a 4% higher birth rate than urban areas then the main reason for that difference is the lack of education about laws, medical problems, and the health of teenage girls.

Conclusion: Awareness in society and the laws of teenage pregnancy

It is true that everyone has a different perspective of thinking, but the main objective is how we come together and think the same for good. Yet many laws are still not clear about teenage pregnancy or should teenage married girls can get the right to termination of pregnancy without any consent of their guardian.

The whole paper is talked about the bad impact of teenage pregnancy and the termination of pregnancy at her adolescent age and this termination affects the body, mind, and most important health. This termination of pregnancy at her adolescent age can cause a bad impact on the medical condition of the girl even causing the effect on the fertility cycle of a girl by which impact they never fit for giving birth.

Law needs to be changed even teenage married girls have the right to get terminate their pregnancy by their own will within 20-24 weeks of pregnancy and also same for unmarried teenage girls, even she also has a right to terminate their pregnancy without any permission of their guardian. So, this issue comes to be in consideration because it violates the basic fundamental right of Article 21 of the Indian Constitution.

References:

[1] The Kathmandu Post, https://kathmandupost.com/health/2022/07/01/restricting-access-to-abortion-makes-it-more-deadly-un-says#:~:text=%E2%80%9CAs%20the%20United%20Nations%20sexual,and%20means%20to%20do%20so.%E2%80%9D (Nov. 13, 2022)

[2] Legal Service India, https://www.legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-3372-reproductive-rights-for-women-in-india.html (Nov. 13, 2022)

[3] The Economic Time, https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/us/us-court-faces-backlash-after-it-rules-that-teenagers-cant-have-abortions/articleshow/93642570.cms?from=mdr, (Nov. 16, 2022)

[4] The Economic Time, https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/us/us-court-faces-backlash-after-it-rules-that-teenagers-cant-have-abortions/articleshow/93642570.cms?from=mdr, (Nov. 16, 2022)

[5]NIH,  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC411126/ (Nov. 13, 2022)

This article has been authored by Saket Jain, a student at UPES, Dehradun.