Kerala HC Stresses Importance Of Sex Education In Schools Due To Rising Child Pregnancies Caused By Rape, Sexual Assault
Sex education is not much talked about in our Indian society despite the sexual health problems, rising number of sexual assault and rape cases among other things. We’re the second most populated country in the world and yet, we don’t want to talk about sex or sex education. For a long time, sex education has been looked down upon in our Indian society and change is nowhere near. Addressing this issue, recently, the Kerala High Court expressed its concerns about the lack of sex ed in schools amidst the rising number of child pregnancies that are usually a result of sexual abuse meted out by close relatives or known people in most cases. The court also called for educating the youth of the country on the safe use of social media and the internet.
The Kerala High Court hearing a plea by the mother of a 13-year-old girl, who was sexually abused by her minor sibling and was pregnant by 30 weeks, seeking the Court’s intervention to medically terminate the pregnancy owing to the physical strain of carrying a pregnancy at a young age and the psychological impact and mental stress that it would cause. Making an observation in the case, the Kerala High Court bench expressed concern over the “increasing number of child pregnancies” of which some involve close relatives. The court stated that it is time for the authorities to reassess the sexual education being imparted in the schools. Noting the “easy availability of porn on the internet” the court said that, it can mislead the “juvenile mind of youngsters and give them wrong ideas”. Stressing the importance of sex education, the Kerala HC bench also said that it’s crucial to educate children about the safe use of social media and the internet, as reported by Live Law.
The Kerala High Court also noted that another Bench was considering the same issue in a bail application. The judge, in that case, had observed that the educational authorities of the State have failed in spreading the required awareness to children about the “consequences of sexual overtures”. The Court was hearing the case of a 13-year-old girl who had gotten pregnant following sexual abuse by her minor sibling. The girl was unaware of her pregnancy and it only came to light after the mother of the victim took her to the doctor after she complained of abdominal pain and missed her periods for over 2 months. A physical examination and a test then revealed that the girl was pregnant by 30 weeks after which the mother of the victim approached the court seeking medical termination of the pregnancy.
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The advocate for the State in the case submitted that as per the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, abortion is maximum permissible till 24 weeks and the girl has already crossed 30 weeks. The advocate further told the Kerala High Court that exemption is only allowed in cases where the abortion is necessitated by the diagnosis of a foetal abnormality. The court favoured the victim after it found that specific categories of women who are considered eligible for termination of pregnancy under the MTP Act include survivors of sexual assault, rape or incest as well as minors and in this case, the victim was a minor rape survivor and incest was also involved. Taking note of the rights of the unborn baby, the court noted that a woman also has a right to make reproductive choices as recognised under Article 21 as a part of her personal liberty. Considering the age of the victim, the court also observed that courts across the country often leaned in favour of permitting the termination of pregnancies. At the same time, the court also held that if the baby is found to be alive at birth, the hospital shall ensure that it gets the best medical treatment available and if the petitioner is not willing to take responsibility for the baby, the State shall assume full responsibility.
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It is essential to note that in this case the court not only upheld the reproductive right of a woman and tried to understand the situation of the minor rape survivor but also noted that sex education is essential to prevent such cases in the future. Now that we have a High Court in our country pointing out the importance of sex education, will things change? Will we finally actually educate the youth about sex and sexual health instead of simply adding one chapter of reproduction in Biology books and barely scratching the surface? Guess, it really is high time to educate the youth and children about sex, sexual health, consent and the consequences of sex crimes.
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