HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF RIGHTS OF WOMEN

Reproductive rights, being newly emerged rights internationally, still need to find an explicit reference in the Indian Constitution. Though governments across the world have recognized the right to survive pregnancy as a human right, and, so, now the local actors need to adopt legal strategies that can give this specific right of women, the force of law and transform it into reality in the domestic sphere. In India, the reproductive health of women has been neglected owing to excessive focus on population control policies. The conditions of women are considered to be the most discriminated against- socially, economically, and politically. Yet, Indian judges are yet to fully recognize reproductive choice as one of the key aspects of the right to personal liberty or right to privacy. The approach of the Indian Judiciary has always been to privilege community interests over individual choice and privacy.