A larger three-judge bench then rescinded the order on abortion, observing that “we cannot kill a child”. In recent cases involving minors seeking termination of advanced pregnancies, even in cases of rape, the Centre has advocated for carrying the foetus to full term followed by adoption, instead of approving abortions beyond the 24-week statutory limit. The Centre’s lawyers and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) , which is the nodal medical body assigned by the court for abortion cases, have argued that termination of pregnancy in advanced cases is “akin to foeticide”. Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati made this argument on Thursday, too, in the curative plea filed by AIIMS, pressing for the 15-year-old rape survivor to carry the foetus for “four more weeks” in the interest of the minor as well as the foetus. While the SC refused to entertain the plea in this case, courts have declined to allow the termination of pregnancy in other cases in the past, allowing the Centre’s stand.…