Section 89

This provision continues a long-standing principle from colonial-era Indian law (originally Section 313 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860) that treats causing a miscarriage against a woman's will as a much graver offence than causing one with her consent. The law recognizes that forcing a miscarriage on an unwilling woman is effectively an assault on her bodily autonomy and can be linked to violence, coercion, or attempts to conceal a crime like rape or to control reproductive choices against her wishes. By imposing harsher punishment — up to life imprisonment — the law signals that non-consensual termination of pregnancy is treated closer to a serious bodily harm or homicide-adjacent offence, especially given the risk to the woman's life and the violation of her consent.

• Myth: This law only punishes doctors who perform abortions.
  Fact: It applies to anyone who causes a miscarriage without the woman's consent, not just medical professionals — including family members or others who force or trick her.
• Myth: If the pregnancy was very early, the punishment is automatically lighter.
  Fact: The law explicitly states it applies 'whether the woman is quick with child or not,' meaning the stage of pregnancy doesn't reduce the seriousness of lacking consent.