Living Will and passive euthanasia

• Passive euthanasia is a condition of withdrawal of medical treatment with the deliberate intention to hasten the death of a terminally-ill patient.
• Passive euthanasia is legal in India
• Active Euthanasia entails the use of lethal substances to either voluntarily or involuntarily end a life.
• Active euthanasia is illegal in India
• SC in a recent judgment said passive euthanasia and advance living will are "permissible" as human beings 'have the right to die with dignity'
• The top court said 'living will' will be permitted but with the permission from family members of the person who sought passive Euthanasia and also a team of expert doctors who say that the person's revival is practically impossible.
• A living will is a written document that allows a patient to give explicit instructions in advance about the medical treatment to be administered when he or she is terminally ill or no longer able to express informed consent.
• Article 21: "no person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law"
• SC in 2011 recognized passive euthanasia in Aruna Shanbaug's case by which it had permitted withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment from patients not in a position to make an informed decision
• 241st report of the Law Commission stated that passive euthanasia should be allowed with certain safeguards
• A proposed law: Medical Treatment of Terminally Ill Patient (Protection of Patients and Medical Practitioners) Bill, 2006.