KOCHI: The Kerala High Court on Monday allowed a petition seeking permission to perform an abortion on a 10-year-old girl, who was raped by her father and got pregnant, and permitted hospital authorities to take an appropriate decision. The medical board had given a report that the child would have to undergo surgery to remove the baby as growth has gone beyond a fixed limit. Following this, a bench of Justice PV Kunhikrishnan allowed the hospital in Thiruvananthapuram to take appropriate action within a week.

Under current law, abortions can only be performed up to 24 weeks of gestation. The girl's mother had approached the high court seeking permission as this time limit had expired. The Medical Board reports that pregnancy is more likely to cause health problems as the girl is only 10-year-old and that the risk of the baby surviving an abortion is 80 percent.

The court directed the hospital authorities to seek the help of medical specialists if necessary. The Director of Health Services should take the necessary steps for this. Hospital authorities should provide full medical support if the baby is still alive. The court ruled that the government and the agency related to children should take responsibility if the plaintiffs cannot.

The High Court said it was an extremely unfortunate incident. "If the allegation that the father was tortured is true, then the whole society should be ashamed and humiliated. Our legal system will ensure that the accused will receive legally appropriate punishment," the court said.