Sections 312 -318 deals with offences against unborn children and infants.
EVERY Law CONSIDERS UNBORN as a living person and to name a few
1. Hindu law
2. Muslim law
3. Property Act.
They all consider unborn child inside the womb as living person.
Section 312 deals with causing miscarriage of women.
This section has to be read with the
MEDICAL TERMINATION OF PREGNANCY ACT 1971.
This Act has relaxed the law of section 312 that makes punishable the termination of pregnancy even by the mother of the child
This Act allows the termination of pregnancy and decriminalises such act in some conditions example.
1. Rape cases
2. Deformed baby.
3. Failure of contraceptives .
But this Act also makes it necessary that such termination should only be done by a registered medical practitioner.
SECTION 312 reads as follows.
Causing miscarriage.—Whoever voluntarily causes a woman with child to miscarry, shall, if such miscarriage be not caused in good faith for the purpose of saving the life of the woman, be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both; and, if the woman be quick with child, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.
Explanation.—A woman who causes herself to miscarry, is within the meaning of this section.
This sections deals with causing miscarriage by the consent of the women and thus the person doing it and the women both are punishable under this section ,this is implied from the fact that section 313 deals with causing miscarriage without the consent of the women and that attracts higher punishment for the same.
Reason behind this Section
The main reason behind this section is that every person is considered to be as an asset of the state and thus no-one has the right to take the life of other person even though the person taking the life is the mother of the child.
The terms that are used in this Section are not same as the medical terms for the development of the foetus in the womb but the words used are
1. Miscarriage of Child
2. Miscarriage of a quick child.
Miscarriage of a quick child is different from the miscarriage of child in the terms that quick child in IPC is referred to a child that has been developed substantially in the womb and has started making movements also, talking in terms of medical terms this is the stage when the placenta gets attached and is usually after the 3 rd month of the pregnancy .
Causing miscarriage of a quick child is punishable more in IPC than causing miscarriage of a child that is not quick that implies a child in medical terms before 3rd month of pregnancy.
Exception to this Section
The only exception to this section is when such miscarriage is done in good faith in order to save the life of the mother thus this is also an exception to the rules laid down by the court in the case of
Stephens and Dudley
That self preservation is no excuse for taking life of another person and no life is more important than the life of other.
Thus if a miscarriage is caused by a person in order to save the life of the women that is allowed .
Punishment for the Offence of 312 IPC
Miscarriage of a child “not quick”
3 Years OR fine or both.
It is important to know that the word or is written and the court has complete discretion to convict the accused only with fine and not imprisonment if the court feels that the act was done by the accused under certain circumstances that were unavoidable.
Miscarriage of a quick Child
7 Years AND Fine
Classification of offence of section 312
Non Cognizable
Bailable
Compoundable
Triable by magistrate of first class.
It is important to note that the offence has been made Bailable and Non cognizable because it is presumed that a mother would never consent to miscarry her child and if she is giving her consent then there might be certain circumstances that are so unavoidable that she is forced to take such steps.
Thus the law also has been lenient in this section.
Also after the passing of Medical termination of pregnancy Act 1971 this section has been left without any practical use.
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