Aruna Ramchandra Shanbaug v/s. Union of India
- Ishika Sharma
- May 22, 2020
Content :
Life is meant for living but sometimes the circumstances in life did not allow us to live our life. Same is the story of Aruna Shanbaug, who was sexually assaulted by a ward boy of the same hospital where Aruna was working as a nurse. The incident was of 1973 which caused irreparable damage to her brain and pushed her into coma (in medical term Persistent Vegetative State). The story did not end there, she lived in the same vegetative State for nearly 42 years as a patient until her death in 2015. The nurses of the same hospital take care of her. This case was filed in Dec-2010 in the Supreme Court of India on the contention that Article 21 that gives right to life also includes right to die. The Supreme court of India responded on the same in March-2011 and gave a landmark judgment of legalizing Passive Euthanasia in India that also put in light that a person who is living in the state as Aruna Shanbaug will have right to die by means of mercy killing or Euthanasia. But in this case, due to non-fulfillment of the guidelines issued by the SC, the plea was rejected. This article include discussion on Aruna Shanbaug case and gave an idea of euthanasia in India on basis of it.
