Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has allowed passive euthanasia for a 31-year-old Ghaziabad resident who has remained in a permanent vegetative state for nearly 13 years, after suffering severe head injuries in a fall from the fourth floor while he was a student. It is the first time that passive euthanasia has been permitted in India.
A Bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan permitted withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment for Harish Rana, observing that the medical board may exercise its clinical judgment in accordance with the guidelines laid down by the apex court in its landmark 2018 ruling in Common Cause vs. Union of India.
“He experiences sleep–wake cycles but exhibits no meaningful interaction and has been dependent on others for all activities of self-care. Harish has been on CAN administered through a PEG tube, and his condition has shown no improvement,” the Bench noted on his condition.
Allowing the plea filed by his family, the Bench directed that Rana be admitted to the palliative care unit at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, where the process of withdrawal of medical treatment can be carried out.
Harish has been in a permanent vegetative state with 100 per cent disability and quadriplegia, requiring continuous medical assistance for breathing, feeding, and daily care.
Harish suffered a grievous accident in August 2013 after falling from the fourth floor of his paying guest accommodation while pursuing his BTech degree in Chandigarh. Earlier, his parents had approached the Delhi High Court seeking the constitution of a Medical Board to examine his condition and to consider whether life-sustaining treatment could be withdrawn in accordance with the guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court in Common Cause v. Union of India.
However, the HC declined to grant relief. It held that Harish was not on mechanical life support and was able to sustain himself without external aid. The court further held that since he was not terminally ill, the question of passive euthanasia did not arise. The parents then challenged the HC order before the top court in 2024, seeking the constitution of a Primary Medical Board for their son.
The top court initially declined to grant that relief, but gave liberty to the parents to approach it again if further directions were required. As Harish’s condition remained unchanged and irreversible, his father filed the present petition seeking the withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment for his son.
