Question

Assertion (A): Abortion may be induced at twenty weeks of gestation without second medical opinion.

Reason (R): The conditions for medical termination of pregnancy have been liberalized in India.

• A. Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.
• B. Both A and R are true but R is NOT the correct explanation of A.
• C. A is true but R is false.
• D. A is false but R is true.

Hint:

Check which gestation band twenty weeks falls into under the MTP Act rules on number of doctors required.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1: Understanding the Question:
We need to apply the rules of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act, 1971, which lays down how many doctors must agree before an abortion can be done at a given stage of pregnancy.

Step 2: Key Concept:
Under the MTP Act, up to 12 weeks of pregnancy, the opinion of only one registered medical practitioner is enough. Once the pregnancy is between 12 and 20 weeks, the law requires the opinion of two registered medical practitioners, formed in good faith, before the termination can be done. Beyond 20 weeks, termination was not permitted under the original Act except to save the mother's life.

Step 3: Detailed Explanation:
Twenty weeks falls at the upper edge of the 12 to 20 week band, so it needs the opinion of two doctors, not one. This means the assertion, which claims abortion can be induced at twenty weeks without a second opinion, is false.
The reason, however, is a true statement on its own. Before the MTP Act, 1971, abortion was largely a criminal offence under the Indian Penal Code, and the Act liberalized the law by allowing termination on medical, humanitarian and social grounds under defined conditions. So R is true, even though it does not make A true.

Step 4: Final Answer:
A is false but R is true.