Mom breaks down in tears over newborn’s health after surrogate refused to abort pregnancy
A mom at the centre of a multi-state surrogacy battle broke down in tears as she spoke about her newborn son's health in court.
Appearing before a Dallas court on Tuesday, Nausheen Gilkar and her husband Omar Ahmed addressed the highly-publicized legal dispute they're embroiled in with surrogate McKenna West.
The Californian couple, who are the biological parents of the infant, has entered a surrogacy agreement with West, a 28-year-old nurse and mom-of-two from Alaska.
Sadly, around 20 weeks into West's pregnancy, the unborn child was diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), a severe congenital heart defect.
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Gilkar and Ahmed request a termination due to the medical risks but West refused, despite having agreed to terminate the pregnancy in the event of severe fetal abnormalities in the initial surrogacy agreement.
Shortly afterwards, West went to Texas, where abortion bans are in place, and eventually gave birth to a boy - whom his biological parents have named Rumi - on August 12.
She is seeking full custody of the infant, while simultaneously suing Gilkar and Ahmed for breach of contract as they put a stop to her surrogate compensation.
As the legal battle rages on with, Gilkar broke down in court as she spoke about her son's health.
"He's our child," she said as she took to the witness stand.
Addressing West, who was sat in the courtroom, Gilkar added, "She's unstable. She's trying to take him from us."
She and her husband insisted they are dedicated to caring for Rumi, who Gilkar said is the "most beautiful person I've ever seen".
The court also heard the couple's difficult journey to starting a family, which includes eight failed rounds of IVF and Gilkar undergoing a hysterectomy.
"This was our only option. We've never wanted anything more than this baby," Gilkar told the court through tears.
Gilkar and Ahmed were recognized as Rumi's sole legal parents by a California court, with a temporary restraining order, which prevents West from contacting Rumi, being issued.
While the court considers the custody claims, Ashley Wyscoki, a Dallas Country Judge, extended the restraining order for 14 days.
Since his birth in early August, Rumi has faced complex health issues, including an incident where he required resuscitating after an emergency at the hospital.
Gilkar told the court her son is "suffering a lot", and added, "When they tried to give him medicine, the tube came out and he stopped breathing and chaplain was called."
In recent weeks, the infant has undergone open-heart surgery as well as genetic testing. He remains in critical condition under intensive care.
Danni King