- (1.) Indian society's discrimination towards female child still exists due to various reasons which has its roots in the social behaviour and prejudices against the female child and, due to the evils of the dowry system, still prevailing in the society, in spite of its prohibition under the Dowry Prohibition Act. The decline in the female child ratio all over the country leads to an irresistible conclusion that the practice of eliminating female foetus by the use of pre-natal diagnostic techniques is widely prevalent in this country. Complaints are many, where at least few of the medical professionals do perform Sex Selective Abortion having full knowledge that the sole reason for abortion is because it is a female foetus. The provisions of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971 are also being consciously violated and misused.
(2.) The Parliament wanted to prevent the same and enacted the Pre- Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition on Sex- Selection) Act, 1994 (for short 'the Act') which has its roots in Article 15(2) of the Constitution of India. The Act is a welfare legislation. The Parliament was fully conscious of the fact that the increasing imbalance between men and women leads to increased crime against women, trafficking, sexual assault, polygamy etc. Unfortunately, facts reveal that perpetrators of the crime also belong to the educated middle class and often they do not perceive the gravity of the crime.
(3.) This Court, as early as, in 2001 in Centre for Enquiry into Health and Allied Themes v. Union of India, 2001 5 SCC 577had noticed the misuse of the Act and gave various directions for its proper implementation. Non- compliance of various directions was noticed by this Court again in Centre for Enquiry into Health and Allied Themes v. Union of India, 2003 8 SCC 398and this Court gave various other directions.;