Allahabad High Court orders railways pay ₹8L for fetus death
Big legal update: The Allahabad High Court just ruled that if someone loses a fetus (after five months) in a railway accident, it should be treated the same as losing a child.
This came after Savitri Devi and her seven-month-old fetus both died while getting off the Jan Sadharan Express.
The court set aside an earlier decision that denied separate compensation for the unborn child, and now the railways have to pay an extra ₹8 lakh.
Court: developed fetus could equal child
The court made it clear: a fetus isn't just "part of the mother," but its own being.
In their words: "Since the woman was carrying a seven-month-old fetus, the unborn child had to be treated separately," said the court.
The court also said the death of a sufficiently developed fetus could be treated as the death of a child for determining compensation.