Activists question Speaker J.C.D. Prabhakar’s participation in ‘pro-life’ rally

Activists have criticised Speaker J.C.D. Prabhakar for taking part within the ‘March for Life’, a ‘pro-life’ rally held at Stella Maris Faculty in Chennai on Saturday (August 8, 2026) and Sunday (August 9, 2026).

The occasion, which advocates the “safety of human life from conception to pure loss of life”, noticed Mr. Prabhakar take part in a marketing campaign that activists have criticised for selling a fundamentalist place on abortion and reproductive rights. Activists questioned the participation of a constitutional office-holder in such a programme and raised concern over the message this might ship on ladies’s reproductive autonomy and entry to secure and authorized abortion.

Mr. Prabhakar reportedly mentioned the rally served as a reminder that life had worth even earlier than start. He described the occasion as expressing the assumption that each unborn youngster had dignity, and each life had a future, objective and “God-given intention”. In movies circulating on social media, he’s seen collaborating within the rally as individuals chant, “Let’s cease abortion.”

Writer-activist Shalin Maria Lawrence condemned Mr. Prabhakar’s participation within the rally, calling it “undesirable and incorrect”, notably at a time when abortion, although legalised, stays a gray space in observe, as many ladies are nonetheless compelled to hunt abortions at off-the-radar clinics. The Medical Termination of Being pregnant (MTP) Act, 1971, legalised abortion in India, underneath particular circumstances, offering ladies entry to secure and controlled termination of being pregnant by means of authorised medical practitioners. She additionally condemned the Archbishop of Mylapore and different Christian leaders who led the occasion.

Ms. Lawrence mentioned that at a time when activists have been attempting to normalise abortion, as ladies proceed to face disgrace and stigma for having one, the Speaker lending his voice to the trigger might set a incorrect precedent. “Non secular freedom is one factor, however tying morality to a human rights subject is equal to pushing ladies backwards,” she mentioned.

Alka Barua, challenge advisory committee member and abortion theme lead at CommonHealth India, mentioned individuals who organise such campaigns and marches usually describe them as “pro-life” occasions, however abortion itself might be thought of pro-life when a lady’s life and well being have been at stake. “It must be her selection. Her well being is at stake. It relies on her potential. Opposing abortion isn’t pro-life; it’s anti-choice. Ladies’s lives are equally vital,” Dr. Barua added.