Nirmala Thapa, a 24-year-old Nepali woman who is in a Malaysian jail on the charge of aborting a foetus, can now heave a sigh of relief.

Ng Ek Tiong, a doctor who conducted an abortion on Nirmala at his clinic in Bukit Mertajam of Malaysia, appeared in a Sessions Court on 30 July and told the judges that her lost life would have been at risk if she had continued with pregnancy.

“Do you agree that whatever procedure you did was justified and in accordance to the law and that you did it in good faith to save the life of the mother?” defense counsel E. Gnasegaran asked, to which the doctor agreed, according to the local media reports.

The doctor also told the court that Nirmala did not know her own mental and physical health conditions and it was up to him to assess and perform the required treatment.

“She came for a checkup and told me she was feeling sick and unable to work, so I did a scan and confirmed that she was six weeks pregnant,” he reportedly told the court.

Nirmala faces charges of ‘conducting an act to prevent a child from being born alive without the intention of saving her own life as the mother’ under the section 315 of the Malaysian Penal Code. She could face up to 10 years jail or a fine or both upon conviction.

She underwent abortion at Poliklinik Ng of Bukit Mertajam, Malaysia on 9 October last year. Abortion is illegal in Malaysia and can be permitted only if a registered medical practitioner concludes that continuity of pregnancy would result in risks to the mother’s life, physical and mental health.

The final verdict on Nirmala’s case is expected to be delivered within three weeks. She had gone to Malaysia as a migrant worker.