Abortion as a Constitutional Right in India

Abortion is a topic which stays in the limelight of this contemporary world now and then. That’s what happened on 4 March 2024, when French legislators, in a progressive move, voted in favor of a bill to make the ‘Right to Abortion’ a Constitutional Right. France has created history by becoming the first-ever country to enshrine ‘Right to Abortion’ in their Constitution. In India, despite the legalization of abortion, 67% of the pregnant women still go for unsafe abortions and lack decisive autonomy for their reproductive choices. And if we talk about making the ‘Right to Abortion’ a constitutional right in India, the idea seems impossible due to multiple factors, in particular- religion, social and cultural norms, bio-medical ethics, financial problems, lack of support from family, emotional and psychological factors, etc. Also, where patriarchy is prevalent, it is a little difficult for a woman to access abortion, because male-dominated society does not give the power to decide ‘whether to keep a child or not’ to a woman irrespective of the fact that the choice concerns her body, which clearly violates a woman’s right to reproduction and decisional autonomy. A reason why the slogan “My body, my choice” is so famous among Feminists as it is seen as a milestone in achieving Women Empowerment.

Although much research is already conducted on Abortion Rights in India, no one discusses about whether we should make it a Constitutional right in India or not. Hence, the researcher through this paper will explain why there’s a need to enshrine ‘Right to abortion’ in the Constitution of India.