Surrogacy Regulation Bill, 2019

Surrogacy alludes to a course of action where a woman consents to bring forth a child of another couple who is unequipped to conceive a child because of some issues. The act of gestational surrogacy practice enables the kid to be hereditarily identified with both the mother who contributed the egg and father who contributed the sperm. The embryo is planted artificially into the surrogate mother's belly that brings forth the child.

The Lok Sabha has passed an alteration to the surrogacy laws in India as they apply to the nation. The act of commercial surrogacy was prohibited by this alteration so as to keep the practice of abusing the poor women who couldn't bear the cost of surrogacy.

LEGISLATION

In 2002, India had sanctioned the act of commercial surrogacy which has now been prohibited by the present government through this bill. The arrangements to be featured are; ban on commercial surrogacy and the enlistment of surrogacy facilities.

The principles have been laid on the capabilities of the surrogate and the couples who can choose surrogacy. The Bill is aimed at ending the exploitation of women who are lending their womb for surrogacy and protecting the rights of children born through this. [1]

These arrangements have been laid so as to guarantee that the couples are not misused by the surrogacy business. This is an apparent move by the legislature but it also has certain shortcomings. The word used in the legislation is ‘close relative’ who can lend a belly. It isn't characterized by who a nearby relative is. These inquiries are left unanswered by the administration. A point of congruity on a similar issue is whether a third individual who may not be a close relative has no privilege to lend her belly. In a nation where ladies are still shunned when they can't conceive a child and who need to fall back on this practice to give the family a kid will now have to be helpless.

The bill has not made any arrangement for the couples of same-sex and the couples who are in a live-in relationship. Single ladies who need to hold up under a kid are not secured by the officials. It is an inquiry that the administration needs to reply to. The classifications of individuals rejected have an equivalent right to experiencing the delight of having a child. This can be made conceivable if the administration permits surrogacy for these people. Making such a sensitive decision is an individual’s right and the legislature can't prohibit the individuals from having a kid solely depending on their conjugal status. There might be substantial defences ensuring the interests of the unborn kid in specific cases, however, these can be dealt with through other regulations. The society ought to be kept from barring such kids through government legitimization. Offering rights to an individual as opposed to removing them through such enactments is a balance the government needs to make.

The legislators have prohibited commercial surrogacy which implies that the surrogates will not be qualified for costs other than the therapeutic costs. Altruistic surrogacy has been made supreme. “Altruistic surrogacy” means the surrogacy in which no charges, expenses, fees, remuneration or monetary incentive of whatever nature, except the medical expenses incurred on surrogate mother.[2] The 228th report of the Law Commission of India has recommended prohibiting commercial surrogacy and allowing altruistic surrogacy by enacting a suitable legislation.[3] This is fairly flawed in light of the fact that for a lady who is lending her belly for the term, it appears to be somewhat low that she ought not to be given any fiscal payment by the couple. This isn't to understand the entire relationship as a business exchange rather a relationship where the surrogate is qualified for advantage by the couple she is earning the life of. The legislators have a substantial motivation to boycott the business of surrogacy because of its misuse and rejection by the surrogates. However, the other side can't be left unprecedented. One of the major concerns about surrogacy is the potential harm inflicted upon the surrogate mother and the child. [4]

A sensible solution that could have been opted by the government could have been to adjust the interests of the couple and the surrogate is by setting a base necessity that the couples need to pay contingent upon their financial status. For the couples who are poor and monetarily not equipped for paying, the government can absolve them from paying while at the same time paying from its fund kept for this reason. For couples who wish to pay more ought to be left open with the alternative of paying the surrogate. The contention of misuse emerges when there is no focal component to manage the situation and the individual helping out is in the ruling position. So as to safeguard the health of the surrogate from conceiving different children this could have been dealt with if the surrogate got a restorative declaration from an enrolled medical specialist to give birth to another child.

A surrogate is giving the prime joy to a couple by bringing forth their child. She should be given sure degree of advantage for this. Thus, the couples independent of the conjugal status and single ladies should also be allowed a chance to hold up under a kid through a surrogate. This is the basic right of each individual and the legislature ought to think about it.

[The author, Divya Vishal is a law student at National University of Study and Research In Law, Ranchi]

1. Lok Sabha passes Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill, THE HINDU (Aug. 05, 2019), https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/lok-sabha-passes-surrogacy-bill/article28824277.ece
2. THE SURROGACY (REGULATION) BILL, 2019, LS 156-C,2(2019)
3. Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill, 2019,INSIGHTS( Aug. 06,2019), https://www.insightsonindia.com/2019/08/06/surrogacy-regulation-bill-2019/
4. Tieu, M.M., Altruistic Surrogacy: The Necessary Objectification of Surrogate Mothers, 35 JSTOR 171, pp. 171–175(2008)