This section punishes doctors performing legal abortions.

This law is about deliberate harmful acts intended to prevent live birth or cause death after birth outside lawful medical procedures; it does not target legally permitted abortion procedures governed by separate laws like the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act.

Any accident during childbirth can lead to prosecution under this section.

Courts require proof of deliberate intention to cause the child's death or prevent live birth; accidental or negligent harm during delivery does not fall under this specific provision.

Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023

Section 91

Act done with intent to prevent child being born alive or to cause to die after birth

Whoever before the birth of any child does any act with the intention of thereby preventing that child from being born alive or causing it to die after its birth, and does by such act prevent that child from being born alive, or causes it to die after its birth, shall, if such act be not caused in good faith for the purpose of saving the life of the mother, be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, or with fine, or with both.§

Why this exists

This provision (carried forward from Section 315 of the old Indian Penal Code) exists to protect an unborn child in the final stages of pregnancy and a newborn immediately after birth from deliberate harm, separate from the laws on abortion (which deal with terminating pregnancy with the woman's consent for health or other lawful reasons) and murder (which applies only after a child is legally considered born and alive). It targets intentional acts—such as harmful interference during delivery—that are not medically justified attempts to save the mother.

How courts read it

Courts interpreting the identical earlier provision (IPC Section 315) have emphasized that the prosecution must prove clear intention to prevent live birth or to cause death after birth, and that mere negligence or accidental harm during delivery does not attract this section. Judges have also stressed the good-faith exception protects doctors and attendants who act to save the mother's life during complicated childbirth, distinguishing lawful emergency medical intervention from culpable intentional harm.

Common misconceptions

Myth: This section punishes doctors performing legal abortions.
Fact: This law is about deliberate harmful acts intended to prevent live birth or cause death after birth outside lawful medical procedures; it does not target legally permitted abortion procedures governed by separate laws like the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act.
Myth: Any accident during childbirth can lead to prosecution under this section.
Fact: Courts require proof of deliberate intention to cause the child's death or prevent live birth; accidental or negligent harm during delivery does not fall under this specific provision.