Judiciary to deal strictly with female foeticide cases:CJI

Patiala, Dec 17 (UNI) The Judiciary in India will observe 2007 as 'Awareness year of female foeticide' and will deal in a strict manner against those responsible for this crime, Chief Justice of India Y k Sabharwal today declared.

Delivering his presidential address at the state level seminar on 'Eradication of Female Foeticide', jointly organised by the Punjab Department of Health and Family Welfare and Punjab Legal Services Authority here, he called upon the people to rid themselves of the son-obsession ''as our lives will be just as fulfilling, if not more, if our children were to be girls''.

The law can play an important role in checking this menace of female foeticide, he added.

The CJI suggested that all sections of society must work together to ensure that each and every baby girl was given her due in society.

Warning the mediacl fraternity, he said there ought to be stricter control over clinics that offer to identify the sex of a foetus and stronger check on abortions to ensure that these are not performed for the wrong reasons. Doctors must also be sensitised and strong punitive measures must be taken against those who violate the law, he asserted.

Justice Sabharwal said that if this unhealthy trend continued for some more time, then probably it would disturb the demographic composition of the society, giving rise to many matrimonial problems.

''It requires the commitment, devotion and sensitivity of all to eradicate this deep rooted social problem,'' he noted.

The ''son syndrome and obsession'' must be wiped out from the minds and we must give equal importance to the girl child, otherwise this trend would lead us nowhere. ''I would just like to say that this is not so much a legal problem but it is a social disease'', he added.

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