The Kerala High Court has overturned a single judge's order that had rejected a 16-year-old rape victim’s plea for an abortion. The court has now allowed her to undergo the medical termination of her pregnancy, which had exceeded 26 weeks.

A division bench, comprising Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice S Manu, stated that the single judge’s decision did not take into account the potential mental trauma the minor could face. This, according to PTI, was because there had been no psychiatrist on the medical board that examined the girl. The bench noted that the single judge should have instructed the girl to be evaluated by a psychiatrist. "Unfortunately, no such direction was issued," the bench said, setting aside the previous ruling on an appeal filed by the victim’s mother.