TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas judge has denied a state request to rule that an anti-abortion law does not violate the equal protection clause or discriminate against women.

The ruling is part of an ongoing lawsuit, in which the state faces a number of challenges to the 2011 law. The law places health and safety restrictions on abortion clinics and is under challenge by two doctors who provide abortions in Overland Park

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports  that Judge Franklin Theis ruled Friday against the state, citing a lack of evidence presented so far.

The state wanted the judge to rule that the law does not violate the equal protection clause or discriminate against women in order to take the equal protection challenge off the table as the lawsuit proceeds.