Chennai: The Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill, 2016 has got opposing views from different sections of society with activists wanting a ban on the surrogacy practice.
“Surrogacy as a practice is a complete violation of human rights. A complete ban on surrogacy is sought, as the clauses in this proposed bill which permits family members to be surrogates, forgery of reports will take place and the practice of commercialization will still continue,” said activist A Narayanan.
He added that only poor women go into surrogacy for money and end up getting exploited by the middlemen, who treat them like a tissue. “Surrogacy thrives because of vested interests and the surrogate as well as the recipient of the child is cheated. No other countries allow surrogacy that is why foreigners flock towards India to find surrogate mothers,” he said.
On the other hand, people also felt that with the bill seeking a ban on unmarried couples, single parents, live-in partners and homosexuals, from opting for surrogacy, private choices are at threat. Advocate Sudha Ramalingam said that it’s a violation of personal choices. “It is not always about commerce. For gay couples or couples incapable of having babies opt for surrogacy, this bill will be an intrusion into their rights.”
“There should be other ways of avoiding exploitation as there will be stealthy ways of overriding the law, but through the law you can’t rob people of their personal choice, ” she continued.
