Recently, the Delhi High Court refused to issue orders for forming a medical board to consider euthanasia (mercy killing) for a man who has been in a permanent vegetative state for over a decade.

Case Brief: 

In an order issued on July 2, Justice Subramonium Prasad rejected the plea of 30-year-old Harish Rana, noting that Rana is not being kept alive mechanically and can sustain himself without any additional external aid.

“The petitioner is thus living and no one, including a physician, is permitted to cause death of another person by administering any lethal drug, even if the objective is to relieve the patient from pain and suffering… While the Court sympathises with the parents as the petitioner is not terminally ill, this Court cannot intervene and allow consideration of a prayer that is legally untenable,” the Court said.

Rana, through his parents, approached the High Court seeking directions to establish a medical board to assess his health condition for the administration of euthanasia.

Rana, a student at Punjab University, sustained head injuries after falling from the fourth floor of his paying guest house. It was reported that he has been bedridden since 2013 and unresponsive for the past 11 years. Additionally, he has developed deep and large bed sores, which have led to further infections.

The Court was informed that Rana's parents have lost all hope for his recovery and are unable to care for him due to their advancing age. Justice Prasad cited the Supreme Court’s judgment in Common Cause v Union of India, stating that, according to the apex court's ruling, active euthanasia, or mercy killing through the administration of external drugs, is legally impermissible.

“In view of the above, this Court is not inclined to accept the request of the petitioner to refer the petitioner to a medical board to consider as to whether the petitioner can be allowed to undergo passive euthanasia. Accordingly, the petition is dismissed along with the pending applications, if any.”

Advocates Neeraj Gupta, Manish Jain, Vikas Kumar Verma, Chelsi, Anchal, Rajesh Kumar and Shanky Jain.

Central Government Standing Counsel (CGSC) Ripu Daman Bhardwaj along with advocates Kushagra Kumar and Abhinav Bhardwaj appeared for Union of India.

Advocates Satya Ranjan Swain and Kautilya Birat represented AIIMS.

Delhi government was represented through its Additional Standing Counsel Udit Malik and Vishal Chanda.