Artificial Wombs & Desi Legal Drama: What About the Moms Who Didn't Give Birth? (Non-Birth Mother's)
Artificial Wombs & Desi Legal Drama: What About the Moms Who Didn't Give Birth? (Non-Birth Mother's)
Introduction
As science pushes the boundaries of what’s biologically possible, artificial womb technology, once the stuff of science fiction, is slowly stepping into the realm of real-world possibilities. Artificial wombs, or "ectogenesis," refer to external devices capable of gestating a fetus outside the human body. While the medical and technological implications of such innovation are groundbreaking, it also opens up a legal and ethical Pandora's box in a country like India, where laws around parenthood, reproductive rights, and gender roles are still heavily rooted in traditional frameworks. One key legal question arising in this context is: Who gets recognized as the legal mother if no one gives birth? This throws into spotlight the ambiguous and often unaddressed status of non-birth mothers, especially in cases involving same-sex couples, surrogacy, and now potentially artificial wombs.
Background
India’s legal system has long associated motherhood with gestation and childbirth, making the concept of a non-birth mother legally complex. Currently, statutes like the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021, and the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021, outline specific roles for genetic, gestational, and commissioning mothers. However, none of these laws directly anticipate a scenario where a child is born without a human womb.
In this legal vacuum, artificial wombs challenge long-held definitions of motherhood. If a fetus can develop entirely outside a woman’s body, the traditional biological link between mother and child becomes more symbolic than essential. For same-sex female couples, single women, or even transgender individuals, this opens up a new path to parenthood, one that’s free from the physical and social demands of pregnancy. Yet, Indian law remains silent on whether a non-gestational mother would have automatic legal rights to the child.
As India begins to engage with futuristic technologies in medicine and biotechnology, there is a growing urgency to revisit and revise the legal definitions of parenthood, before the law falls too far behind science.
Case study
World's first artificial womb facility, EctoLife, has surprised the entire world. In simple words, this artificial womb can facilitate the growth of a fetus outside the body of the mother. In medical terms, it is called extracorporeal pregnancy.A video of the artificial womb was shared by Hashem Al-Ghaili, a Berlin based Science Communicator whose videos are massively viewed and shared on social media. The world’s first artificial womb facility, EctoLife, will be able to grow 30,000 babies a year. It's based on over 50 years of groundbreaking scientific research conducted by researchers worldwide.
Comparison
India and the Netherlands take notably different legal approaches when it comes to recognizing non-birth mothers and preparing for emerging technologies like artificial wombs. In India, motherhood is still primarily defined through biological gestation or legal adoption, with laws like the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021 excluding same-sex couples and offering no framework for recognizing a non-birth mother’s legal rights. As a result, individuals in non-traditional families, especially lesbian couples or single women using future technologies like artificial wombs, face legal uncertainty. In contrast, the Netherlands has adopted a more inclusive and forward-looking stance. It legally recognizes a non-birth mother (called a co-mother) in a lesbian relationship as a parent by default, provided the couple is married or in a registered partnership. Dutch law emphasizes intent-based and emotional parenthood over purely biological definitions, offering a more flexible foundation for integrating new reproductive technologies. This contrast highlights the urgent need for India to modernize its parenthood laws to keep pace with scientific advancements and evolving family structures.
Personal Opinion
Artificial wombs have the potential to revolutionize parenthood by separating reproduction from the physical act of childbirth, but India’s legal system isn’t ready for this shift. In my view, clinging to traditional, biology-based definitions of motherhood excludes a wide spectrum of real, loving parents, especially non-birth mothers in same-sex or non-traditional families. Law should reflect intent and care, not just biology. If science can evolve, so should our legal and social understanding of what it means to be a parent.
Some laws which need to be enhanced are -
Closing Credits
Author: Prerna Batra
"The views expressed are personal. This article is intended for educational purposes and public discourse. Feedback and constructive criticism are welcome!"
Comments
Post a Comment