The Kerala High Court allowed a couple to hand over their baby to the Child Welfare Committee after birth. The ruling followed medical advice that the foetus had a non-lethal condition and termination was unnecessary.Image used for representational purposes onlyKochi,Oct 27, 2026 12:06 ISTThe Kerala High Court has allowed a couple expecting a baby with skeletal dysplasia, a rare genetic condition affecting bone and cartilage development, to hand over the child to the Child Welfare Committee after birth, the Press Trust of India reported.Justice Harisankar V Menon said there was no need to medically terminate the pregnancy as the couple did not intend to retain the child after birth.

The baby could instead be handed over to the committee.The couple had approached the High Court seeking permission to terminate the pregnancy, which had crossed 33 weeks. However, a medical board constituted by the court advised against termination.The board said the foetus had a non-lethal form of skeletal dysplasia and there was no need to terminate the pregnancy.

It also told the court that the child could be handed over to the Child Welfare Committee if the couple did not want to retain the baby. The medical board said developmental delay could not be predicted at this stage in the absence of genetic testing.

Following its recommendation, the couple decided against terminating the pregnancy and sought permission to hand over the baby to the committee.According to medical journals, skeletal dysplasia is a group of between 400 and 750 rare genetic conditions that affect how bones and cartilage form, grow or develop. These include achondroplasia, the most common non-lethal form and a type of dwarfism that causes short limbs and a prominent forehead; brittle bone disease; and hypochondroplasia, a milder form of short-limbed growth difference that may not be noticed until childhood or puberty.

Some forms of skeletal dysplasia are lethal and can result in underdeveloped lungs or stillbirth. In this case, the medical board found that the foetus had a non-lethal form of the condition, following which the court permitted the couple to hand over the child to the Child Welfare Committee after birth.- Ends