New Delhi: Supreme Court on Thursday, in a landmark judgement, held that all women are entitled to safe and legal abortion. A bench headed by Justice DY Chandrachud said that the meaning of the rape must include rape" marital rape for the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act.
The Supreme Court said that the distinction between married and unmarried women for the purposes of the MTP Act is "artificial and constitutionally unsustainable" and perpetuates the stereotype that only married women indulge in sexual activities. The rights of reproductive autonomy give similar rights to unmarried women as that to a married woman, the bench held.
