EUTHANASIA IN INDIA
Euthanasia is the exercise of deliberately ending a person’s life to relieve agony and suffering. This concept of ‘Gentle and easy death’ has been practiced since ancient times. Its origin dates back to the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries (Scherer, 1999).
The first countries to permit euthanasia was the Netherlands in 2001 and Belgium in the year 2002.Countries like Ireland, Israel, Italy, and India illegalizing euthanasia (Sethi, 2015).
Proponents of euthanasia debate that people should be allowed to die in dignity, and no one should be allowed to suffer in pain. According to them, it is immoral to allow people to live in pain. They also believe in letting one decide when and how they die and not the state. A person should not be allowed to suffer because of social-economic reasons such as financial restraints and inadequate health care.
On the other hand, spiritual opponents of euthanasia believe that the creator gives life, and only the creator can decide when to take it. According to their ethical arguments, euthanasia weakens society’s respect for the sanctity of life. According to the opponents, Administering euthanasia might lead to the ending of people’s lives perceived to be undesirable. Allowing euthanasia might also expose vulnerable people to pressure to end their lives; for instance, patients who are deserted by their family members may find euthanasia as the only solution.
This essay will discuss and analyze two reasons for not allowing euthanasia in India. The essay focuses on how euthanasia weakens society’s respect for the sanctity of life. It will also focus on the contribution of mental illnesses like depression to suicidal ideation.
Sanctity of life.
Many countries have been trying to reach a judgment on this subject. According to 3733 UK doctors on the legalization of euthanasia, many doctors were against euthanasia assisted suicide chiefly because of their strong religious beliefs (Colasacco, 2019).
Having preserved various customs, cultures, and religions over a long period, India unraveling these customs, cultures, and attitudes would not be an easy test. By practicing euthanasia, the values of the Indian people, culture, and religion would be eroded. Religion was a significant factor that contributed to doctors deciding on whether euthanasia assisted suicide should be considered. More medics had the view that euthanasia assisted suicide would be against their religious beliefs.
Due to their strong beliefs, the KEM hospital staff wished that Aruna Shanbaug, after being in a persistent vegetative state for 37 years, could live. Based on this example, although one’s perception of assisted suicide does not positively link directly to their religion, it contributes a more significant percentage to a person’s judgment (Sethi, 2015).
Mental illness.
Several studies have maintained a link between depression as a mental disorder and euthanasia assisted suicide, and therefore undiagnosed mental disorder is a contributing factor to suicidal ideation. Apart from unmanaged physical and psychiatric indicators leading to a patient requesting euthanasia, doctors may unintentionally participate in euthanasia to lessen the symptoms that could be managed with better palliative care than providing proper medical management if euthanasia is legalized (Clark, 1997). The constable case who had a psychiatric illness and tried to commit suicide shows that efforts must be made for such persons’ rehabilitation and psychiatric treatment.
Unexplored or undiagnosed stress and depression in persons requesting euthanasia assisted suicide put a probe on the ethical principles underlying such acts.
Conclusion
Due to the above disquiets, several mechanisms have been laid down to reduce euthanasia’s misuse if legalized in India. The guidelines include; (1) a deliberate or free will from the patient requesting for euthanasia, (2)proof of a terminal disease from the medic and the motive for requesting for euthanasia, and (3) the degree to which the medic has gone to rescue the situation by giving the patient proper care and attention (Naseem, 2019).
Active euthanasia is an offense in India, as stated under section 302 (punishment for murder) or at least under section 304 (punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder). Any person ready to practice euthanasia has to sort for permission through the Indian courts of law, and at no given time have the courts permitted euthanasia assisted suicide. (Diver, 2016)
References
Clark, D., 1997. New themes in palliative care. Buckingham: Open University Press.
Colasacco, B., 2019. Sightings: a reflection on religion in public life. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm.B.Eerdmans Publishing Company.
Diver, A., 2016. Justiciability of human rights law in domestic jurisdictions. Cham: Springer.
Naseem, M., 2019. Medical Law in India. Alphen aan den Rijn, The Netherlands: Kluwer Law International.
Scherer, J. M., 1999. Euthanasia and the right to die: a comparative view. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
Sethi, R., 2015. Euthanasia: Legalising “euthanasia” in India: a survey of the attitude of doctors, lawyers, and academics in an urban setting. New Delhi: Sethi -Vidya Prakashan Mandir Ltd.