India's top court gives all women the right to abortion

FILE PHOTO: Television journalists are seen outside the premises of the Supreme Court in New Delhi, India, January 22, 2020. REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that a woman's lack of marital status could not deny her the choice to abort a pregnancy at any time up to 24 weeks, a decision hailed by women's rights activists.

The right to abortion has proved contentious globally after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned in June its landmark decision in Roe v. Wade that had legalised the procedure in the United States.