Passive Euthanasia in India
Passive Euthanasia in India
Passive euthanasia is the intentional act of letting a patient die by withholding or withdrawing life support or the treatment necessary to keep him alive.
But active euthanasia - any act that intentionally helps a person kill themselves - remains illegal.
Legality of Passive euthanasia in India
Aruna shanbag was a nurse who lived in a vegetative state for 42 years following a brutal 1973 sexual assault. While the Supreme Court of India rejected the 2011 petition to end her life, the case became a landmark ruling that legalized passive euthanasia in India.
Though in the Shanbaug case the Supreme Court disallowed passive euthanasia despite recognising it in principle, its decision to let Harish Rana bid farewell reflects greater institutional confidence in implementing the doctrine.
India legalised passive euthanasia in 2018.
Harish Rana case details suffered serious head injuries after falling from a fourth-floor balcony in 2013. He has remained in a comatose state since then.
Over the years, his parents petitioned courts several times to allow their son's life support system to be removed.
In Harsih Rana landmark ruling, India's Supreme Court has allowed the removal of life support of a 31-year-old man who has been in a vegetative state for more than a decade.
Compiled by
Ms Naresh kuwar