‘Can’t keep him like this for all time to come’: SC to speak with parents of man before deciding on passive euthanasia plea

Harish suffered head injuries after falling from a fourth floor apartment in Chandigarh in August 2013, where he was a student at the time. He has been in a permanent vegetative state since then. This is the second time in two years that his parents have approached the Supreme Court seeking passive euthanasia for Harish.

On November 26, the court had asked the Noida District Hospital to constitute a primary medical board to examine Harish. At the last hearing on December 11, the bench had said the assessment indicated that Harish “is in a pathetic condition” and “the team of doctors are of the opinion that the chance of his recovery from the present state is negligible.”

The bench had then directed the AIIMS director to set up a secondary medical board to examine Harish.

“In pursuance of our last order dated December 11, a secondary medical board was constituted by the AIIMS, New Delhi. The team of doctors medically examined the patient, and a report has been forwarded on December 16, 2025. The report consists of the medical history, general examination, neurological examination and other observations made and diagnostic criteria. We direct the Registry to provide each copy to Ms Rashmi and Ms Aishwarya Bhati, learned ASG. We request them to look into the report and study the same and assist us in the report. We request them to jointly speak to the parents and other family members of Harish Rana and give us a report in that regard. We would also like to personally speak to the parents of Harish Rana. For this purpose, we request them to personally remain present before us on January 13 at 3 pm in the committee room. We request both counsels to keep their submissions in writing so that we can proceed with the passing of the final order. Let a copy of the primary board also be furnished to the counsels,” the bench said on Thursday.

The top court recognised the legality of “passive euthanasia” for terminally-ill patients in 2018, reiterating that the “right to die with dignity” was an aspect of the right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution of India.

A five-judge Bench led by then Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra had laid down detailed guidelines for passive euthanasia, both in cases where the patient left an “advance directive” or “living will” stating that life support should be withdrawn if they slipped into terminal illness, and where no such directive was left behind.

In January 2023, another five-judge Bench modified the court’s 2018 order to make the process of withdrawal of treatment for terminally ill patients less stringent and more workable. The changes included the introduction of timelines for each board to make its decision, and limiting the role of the judicial magistrate in the process.