Chhattisgarh High Court sets aside ₹51,000 compensation to woman who conceived despite undergoing tubectomy surgery

The Chhattisgarh High Court recently set aside an order passed by an Additional District Judge giving ₹51,000 as compensation a woman who conceived despite having undergone the state-sponsored Laparoscopic Tubectomy (LTT) Surgery under a family planning scheme [State of Chhatisgarh vs Triveni Bai Yadav].Single-judge Justice P Sam Koshy said that the woman was not serious about family planning because though she was operated in 1998, she delivered her fifth child in 2000 and one more (sixth) after a few years, but never approached a doctor for termination of pregnancy. "It is a fact that immediately upon conceiving the 5th child(unwanted child) as a result of the alleged failure of the LTT operation, there was no intimation given by the woman to the government or to the concerned Doctor at Primary Health Centre, where she was operated. If she was really not interested at having the 5th child or was serious about the family planning operation that she had undergone, she ought to have approached the concerned doctor, with a request for termination of her pregnancy in terms of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971," the judge said..The Court pointed out that the explanation in clause 2 of Section 2 of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act allows a woman to seek permission to abort a foetus, which is conceived on failure of LTT or any other device.But in this case, no such move was made by the woman at any point of time after she conceived despite the surgery. "On the part of the woman, there does not seem to be any such approach made at any point of time, much less there was no report of her upon getting conceived immediately approached the PHC where the doctors could have advised her about the options available to her....It is further established that even after having the 5th child, the plaintiff has further conceived and gave birth to another child i.e. 6th child at a later stage which further gives an indication of the fact that plaintiffs were not quite serious about the issue of failure of LTT Operation or else she would have taken appropriate remedial measures that were medically available at that point of time," the Court opined..By way of background, on December 9, 1998 around 77 women including the petitioner underwent LTT surgery. However, the woman conceived and gave birth to her fifth child in the year 2000.After a long period of time, the woman filed a suit in the year 2005 claiming damages to the extent of ₹1,51,000. The trial court allowed the suit and directed that the woman be granted compensation of ₹51,000. The same was challenged by the State government before the High Court..The High Court opined that the woman had voluntarily approached the primary health centre and had given her consent in writing before undergoing the operation. It noted that the surgery was free of cost and that she never approached the concerned doctor or the health centre informing them about her pregnancy despite the surgery."Considering the fact that the entire operation firstly was voluntarily undertaken by the plaintiff, secondly she having given consent in writing in this case and thirdly there is no evidence so far as any negligence or lapse on the part of the appellants side or for that matter on the Doctor who had conducted the operation, the judgment and decree of the payment of compensation as damages by the Court below does not seem to be proper, legal and justified," the Court ordered.Therefore, the bench quashed and set aside the lower court's orders.Government Advocate Avinash K Mishra represented the State. None appeared for the woman. .[Read Order]