To my understanding the MTP Act 1971 allows for abortions only under the following conditions:
(i) A risk to life of a pregnant woman; or
(ii) A risk of grave injury to her physical and mental health; or
(iii) If the pregnancy is caused by rape; or
(iv) There exists a substantial risk that, if the child were born, it would suffer from some physical or mental abnormalities so as to be seriously handicapped; or
(v) Â Failure of any device or method used by the married couple for the purpose of limiting the number of children; or
(vi) Risk to the health of the pregnant woman by reason of her actual or reasonably foreseeable environment.
If the above six conditions are not met, Â anyone should be able to initiate action to prevent it - possibly including a police complaint
However during the first trimester (12 weeks of gestation!), a pregnant woman cannot abort at her will and pleasure.
S. 3 of the MTP Act is only an enabling provision to save the resident Medical Practitioner from the purview of the IPC.
It has also been stated by the Indian Courts that “termination of pregnancy under the provision of the Act, is not the rule and it is only an exceptionâ€. In other words if a wife aborts the child as per her sweet will under guise of MTP Act then The Act does not actually legalize abortion but only lays down certain circumstances in which it is permitted – that is merely liberalizing in that sense.
The Act allows medical termination of pregnancy up to 20 weeks gestation.
The law however is unclear about an abortion beyond 20 weeks done to save a woman’s life.
Even SC in three mind twisting decisions in recent past in case of Ref.: Nand Kishore Sharmav. Union of India, Dr.Nikhil Dattar & Ors. vs. Union of India  and Chandigarh Administration vs. Nemo choose to be silent on abortion beyond 20 weeks.
