According to a leaked draught of a majority opinion released by Politico, the US Supreme Court is poised to strike down the right to abortion and enable each state to decide whether to restrict or abolish abortion.
According to AFP, the draught was drafted by Justice Samuel Alito and circulated among the conservative-dominated court. The Supreme Court decided to reverse the historic Roe v Wade decision from 1973, declaring abortion rights “egregiously flawed from the outset.”
The US Supreme Court ruled in Roe v Wade that a woman’s constitutional right to abortion was protected.
“We conclude that Roe and Casey must be overturned,” writes Justice Alito in the paper titled “Opinion of the Court” and released on Politico’s website. Justice Alito stated, “It is time to obey the Constitution and return the matter of abortion to the people’s elected representatives.”
“The inhabitants of each state have the right to regulate or prohibit abortion under the Constitution. That power was taken away from Roe and Casey. We now have the authority to overturn such choices and return power to the people and their elected representatives. “Examine the draught.
ABORTION RIGHTS IN THE US
In the United States, birth control and abortion have been under attack in recent months as Republican-led states tightened restrictions, with some aiming to outlaw all abortions beyond six weeks – a period during which many women are unaware they are pregnant.
According to Politico, four other conservative judges voted with Alito, the author of the majority opinion’s initial draught, including Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett.
According to the report, the court’s three liberal members were working on a dissenting opinion, and it was unclear how Chief Justice John Roberts would vote in the end.
On the other hand, Politico noted that the document it got was a draught, and judges do occasionally alter their minds before making a final decision. The decision ends federal constitutional protection for abortion, letting states decide whether to ban or allow abortion independently.
“The Court has no comment,” a Supreme Court spokesman stated when asked about the document being disseminated.
If Roe v. Wade is reversed, the Guttmacher Institute, a pro-choice research organisation, predicts that 26 states will outlaw abortion.
A piece of the text was retweeted by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, an American politician and activist, who commented, “As we’ve warned, the Supreme Court isn’t just after abortion; they’re after Roe’s right to privacy, which covers gay marriage and civil rights. Manchin is preventing Congress from enacting the Roe v. Wade decision. Clarence Thomas seemed to have been forgotten by House. These two points must be altered.”
Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer issued a joint statement condemning the move by “Republican-appointed judges” following news of a draught Supreme Court judgement reversing the Roe v. Wade verdict.
“If the story is correct, the Supreme Court is on the verge of enacting the most significant restriction of rights in the last 50 years, affecting women and all Americans. The rumoured votes of the Republican-appointed Justices to overturn Roe v. Wade would be an outrage, one of the worst and most devastating verdicts in modern history, “according to the statement
Minutes after the Politico leak, a demonstration erupted in front of the Supreme Court.Â
Following the selection of three justices by former President Donald Trump, conservatives now hold a 6-3 majority on the Supreme Court.
Published by- NIKITA GOSWAMI
