The Delhi High Court has observed that the practice of sex determination undermines the value of female life and strikes at the hope of a discrimination-free society.
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma said that the practice fosters a culture in which girls are seen as burdens rather than equal members of the community, and endangers pregnant women by exposing them to unsafe medical procedures.
A recent case involved a man accused of conducting an illegal ultrasound on a woman in her third pregnancy, determining the fetus as female. The woman later died after her medical operation.
Author's summary: Sex determination practice harms female life and society.