What is Passive euthanasia?
Passive euthanasia is a condition where there is withdrawal of medical treatment with the deliberate intention to hasten the death of a terminally-ill patient.Euthanasia  is the practice of intentionally ending a life to relieve pain and suffering.

The word “euthanasia” was first used in a medical context by Francis Bacon in the 17th century, to refer to an easy, painless, happy death, during which it was a “physician’s responsibility to alleviate the ‘physical sufferings’ of the body.” Bacon referred to an “outward euthanasia”—the term “outward” he used to distinguish from a spiritual concept—the euthanasia “which regards the preparation of the soul.”

In current usage, euthanasia has been defined as the “painless inducement of a quick death”

On 9 March 2018 the Supreme Court of India legalised passive euthanasia by means of the withdrawal of life support to patients in a permanent vegetative state. The decision was made as part of the verdict in a case involving Aruna Shanbaug, who had been in a Persistent Vegetative State (PVS) until her death in 2015.

On 9 March 2018, the Supreme Court of India, passed a historic judgement-law permitting Passive Euthanasia in the country. This judgment was passed in wake of Pinki Virani’s plea to lust highest court in December 2009 under the Constitutional provision of “Next Friend”. It is a landmark law which places the power of choice in the hands of the individual, over government, medical or religious control which sees all suffering as “destiny”.

Active euthanasia, including the administration of lethal compounds for the purpose of ending life, is still illegal in India.

In 2018 the Supreme Court of India declared through a five-judge Constitution bench that, if strict guidelines are followed, the government would honor “living wills” allowing consenting patients to be passively euthanized if the patient suffers from a terminal illness or is in a vegetative state.

The Supreme Court delivered a landmark judgment allowing “living will” where, an adult in his conscious mind, is permitted to refuse medical treatment or voluntarily decide not to take medical treatment to embrace death in a natural way. In the judgment, the court laid down a set of guidelines for “living will” and defined passive euthanasia and euthanasia as well.

The court stated the rights of a patient would not fall out of the purview of Article 21 (right to life and liberty) of the Indian Constitution.

NEW DIMENSION IN INDIAN HISTORY- ARUNA’s CASE

Aruna Shanbaug, who was working as a nurse at KEM Hospital, was assaulted on the night of November 27, 1973 by a ward boy. He sodomised Aruna after strangling her with a dog chain. The attack left Aruna blind, paralysed and speechless and she went into a coma from which she has never come out. She is cared for by KEM hospital nurses and doctors. The woman does not want to live any more. The doctors have told her that there is no chance of any improvement in her state. Her next friend (a legal term used for a person speaking on behalf of someone who is incapacitated) describes Shanbaug: “her bones are brittle. Her skin is like ‘Paper Mache’ stretched over a skeleton. Her wrists are twisted inwards; her fingers are bent and fisted towards her palms, resulting in growing nails tearing into the flesh very often. Her teeth are decayed and giving her immense pain. Food is completely mashed and given to her in semisolid form. She chokes on liquids and is in a persistent vegetative state.” So, she, through her ‘next friend’ Pinki Virani, decided to move the SC with a plea to direct the KEM Hospital not to force feed her. And on 16th December 2009, the Supreme Court of India admitted the woman’s plea to end her life. The Supreme Court bench compromising Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan and Justices A K Ganguly and B S Chauhan agreed to examine the merits of the petition and sought responses from the Union Government, Commissioner of Mumbai Police and Dean of KEM Hospital.

On 24th January 2011, the Supreme Court of India responded to the plea for euthanasia filed by Aruna’s friend journalist Pinki Virani, by setting up a medical panel to examine her. The three-member medical committee subsequently set up under the Supreme Court’s directive, checked upon Aruna and concluded that she met “most of the criteria of being in a permanent vegetative state”. However, it turned down the mercy killing petition on 7th March, 2011. The court, in its landmark judgement, however allowed passive euthanasia in India. While rejecting Pinki Virani’s plea for Aruna Shanbaug’s euthanasia, the court laid out guidelines for passive euthanasia. According to these guidelines, passive euthanasia involves the withdrawing of treatment or food that would allow the patient to live.

Conclusion

Ms Shanbaug has, however, changed forever India’s approach to the contentious issue of euthanasia. The verdict on her case allows passive euthanasia contingent upon circumstances. So other Indians can now argue in court for the right to withhold medical treatment – take a patient off a ventilator, for example, in the case of an irreversible coma. This judgement makes it clear that passive euthanasia will “only be allowed in cases where the person is in persistent vegetative state or terminally ill.”

indian government has given green signal to ipl 2020 in UAE,ipl starting from SEP 19 th & final is on 10 th November at three venues in the UAE — Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi — subject to government approval, which is expected in the next couple of days.

Teams will be allowed to replace players in case they get unwell during the course of the tournament. The Governing Council met on Sunday to discuss the route map for the successful execution of IPL 2020 in United Arab Emirates (UAE).

IPL franchises will be allowed 24-player squads for the 13th edition of the tournament which is all set to go to the UAE

Calculating all the technicalities of what type of influencers we see in today’s society gets us to a point of being aware that there are people who are yet to do their evolvement as a rational human being because , being an influencer must teach you to be open to all sorts of learning and if there’s any learning left to do the certain influencer should be ready to do it. The “I know it all” attitude doesn’t go well with today’s influencers because everyone’s just a basic human who needs a lot of learning to do even though they’ve been seeing all types of factors effecting their work. And basically, if you get into what makes them tick, they think, “My opinion is worth more than gold in my space.” Now, they understand that they are not experts in everything but in their community, in their area, they are the ones that people turn to. Well, the key here is to create value for their community. In other words, they can’t be bought, but they can be convinced. So, they’re interested in anything that brings value to their audience. And if you can help them on that quest, on that mission, you reinforce their authority and their community, and they’re with you even though no paychecks pass hands. looking at influencers and trying to analyze what bucket do I put them in, understand that the authority works a little differently than the celebrity and, oh, by the way, it’s going to work a little differently with some of the other types that we’ll take a look at. Now, there is a third kind of influencer I like to call connectors. Even if the influencer is partly evolved he needs to be open for rational thinking and sensible learning which helps him get through hard and robust times.

If you understand that these connectors like to connect the dots, they like to create links, that’s what makes them tick. Basically then, that means you need to figure out a way to help them grow their network because they live in a network. They would look at your product and they would write papers and other people would base their purchasing decisions based on what they wrote. And at one point in time, I was actually in charge of analyst relations for one of the high tech companies I worked at. So these type of connectors and influencers are essential for today’s world and there are certain assortments in that too. You want to give them access to insider insights and to new data that they can analyze, but you don’t want to try to impose your analysis on them. They’re experts in this field. Eventually , all these connectors and influencers get through it.

Many other factors in urban areas lead to differences at the beginning and then are domestic violence. Violence against young widows is also increasing in India. Other forms of physical abuse of women also include beating, grabbing, burdening them with bullying, public humiliation, and neglecting health problems.

This form of domestic violence is the most common. The most common causes of harassment and torture of women are dissatisfaction with the dowry and abusing women for more, arguing with a partner, refusing sex with him, neglecting children, leaving home without telling the partner, improper cooking or on time, engaging in new matters, not caring for my parents-in-law, etc.

Domestic violence is a global issue reaching across national boundaries as well as socio-economic, cultural, racial and class distinctions. This problem is not only widely dispersed geographically, but its incidence is also extensive, making it a typical and accepted behavior. Domestic violence is wide spread, deeply ingrained and has serious impacts on women’s health and well-being. Its continued existence is morally indefensible. 

“Domestic violence is a burden on numerous sectors of the social system and quietly, yet dramatically, affects the development of a nation… batterers cost nations fortunes in terms of law enforcement, health care, lost labor and general progress in development. These costs do not only affect the present generation; what begins as an assault by one person on another, reverberates through the family and the community into the future”.

WHAT IS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE?

“Domestic violence is not simply an argument. It is a pattern of coercive control that one person exercises over another. Abusers use physical and sexual violence, threats, emotional insults and economic deprivation as a way to dominate their victims and get their way”.

Domestic violence can be described as the power misused by one adult in a relationship to control another. It is the establishment of control and fear in a relationship through violence and other forms of abuse. This violence can take the form of physical assault, psychological abuse, social abuse, financial abuse, or sexual assault. The frequency of the violence can be on and off, occasional or chronic.

The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 says that any act, conduct, omission or commission that harms or injures or has the potential to harm or injure will be considered domestic violence by the law. Even a single act of omission or commission may constitute domestic violence – in other words, women do not have to suffer a prolonged period of abuse before taking recourse to law. 

The law covers children also. Domestic violence is perpetrated by, and on, both men and women. However, most commonly, the victims are women, especially in our country. Even in the United States, it has been reported that 85% of all violent crime experienced by women are cases of intimate partner violence, compared to 3% of violent crimes experienced by men. Thus, domestic violence in Indian context mostly refers to domestic violence against women.

WHAT LEAD TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE?

Cultural mores, religious practices, economic and political conditions may set the precedence for initiating and perpetuating domestic violence, but ultimately committing an act of violence is a choice that the individual makes out of a range of options. Although one cannot underestimate the importance of macro system-level forces (such as cultural and social norms) in the etiology of gender-based violence within any country, including India, individual-level variables (such as observing violence between one’s parents while growing up, absent or rejecting father, delinquent peer associations) also play important roles in the development of such violence.

Domestic violence against women is an age old phenomenon. Women were always considered weak, vulnerable and in a position to be exploited. Violence has long been accepted as something that happens to women. The gender imbalance in domestic violence is partly related to differences in physical strength and size. Moreover, women are socialized into their gender roles in different societies throughout the world. In societies with a patriarchal power structure and with rigid gender roles, women are often poorly equipped to protect themselves if their partners become violent.

The disparity relates to how men-dependence and fearfulness amount to a cultural disarmament. Husbands who batter wives typically feel that they are exercising a right, maintaining good order in the family and punishing their wives’ delinquency – especially the wives’ failure to keep their proper place.

PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL VIOLENCE:

Violence against women has a far deeper impact than the immediate harm caused. It has devastating consequences for the women who experience it and a traumatic effect on those who witness it, particularly children.

Psychological and emotional violence covers “repeated verbal abuse, harassment, confinement and deprivation of physical, financial and personal resources”. Undermining an individual’s sense of self esteem can have serious mental and physical health consequences and has been identified as a major reason for suicide. Quantifying psychological abuse is extremely difficult, and very few studies have been conducted to establish prevalence rates of this type of violence.

For some women, the incessant insults and tyrannies which constitute emotional abuse may be more painful than the physical attacks because they effectively undermine women’s security and self-confidence. Qualitative studies that have been undertaken conclude that it is just as damaging to one’s health to be continuously psychologically abused as it is to be physically abused.

IMPACT OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN:

Children who witness domestic violence may develop serious emotional, behavioral, developmental or academic problems.

As they develop, children and teens who grow up with domestic violence in the household are:

• more likely to use violence at school or community in response to perceived threats
• more likely to attempt suicide
• more likely to use drugs
• more likely to commit crimes, especially sexual assault
• more likely to use violence to enhance their reputation and self esteem
• more likely to become abusers in later life.

WHY DO WOMEN STAY?

Lack of information about alternatives also forces women to suffer silently within the four walls of their homes. Some women may believe that they deserve the beatings because of some wrong action on their part. Other women refrain from speaking about the abuse because they fear that their partner will further harm them in reprisal for revealing family secrets, or they may be ashamed of their situation. They also fear the consequences of reporting violence and declare an unwillingness to subject themselves to the shame of being identified as battered women. 

Violence against women is a violation of basic human rights. It is shameful for the states that fail to prevent it and societies that tolerate and in fact perpetuate it. It must be eliminated through political will, and by legal and civil action in all sectors of society. Economic dependence has been found to be the central reason. Without the ability to sustain themselves economically, women are forced to stay in abusive relationships and are not able to be free from violence. Due to deep-rooted values and culture, women do not prefer to adopt the option of separation or divorce.

CONCLUSION:

An effective response to violence must be multi-sectoral; addressing the immediate practical needs of women experiencing abuse; providing long-term follow up and assistance; and focusing on changing those cultural norms, attitudes and legal provisions that promote the acceptance of and even encourage violence against women, and undermine women’s enjoyment of their full human rights and freedoms.

The health sector can play a vital role in preventing violence against women, helping to identify abuse early, providing victims with the necessary treatment and referring women to appropriate care. Health services must be places where women feel safe, are treated with respect, are not stigmatized, and where they can receive quality, informed support. A comprehensive health sector response to the problem is needed, in particular addressing the reluctance of abused women to seek help.

The spread of the COVID-19 has proved deadly, and this is a challenging time for the union as well as state governments as they work to address this health emergency. However, shows that in times of crisis, democratic governments may take a dangerous autocratic turn. In such a situation, journalism has a great role to play in a democracy, as it has been ideally visualized as a platform for objective information and critical-rational discourse. Thus, the health of journalism in a country can be examined in the times of a crisis. 

Corporate control over most media bodies also means that they become an instrument of the ideological apparatus of the state. There are many concerns associated with the COVID-19 crisis: ill-equipped public health systems, policies to combat the pandemic, and the lack of planning and support to the vulnerable sections. These issues demand serious examination, but the mainstream media, barring some courageous exceptions, seems to be forgetting its democratic role.

Manipulation of Discourse

Just before the announcement of the nationwide lockdown till 14th April 2020, Prime Minister Narendra Modi reportedly called upon print and electronic media owners and editors of the country and asked them to support government efforts to combat the pandemic and also advised them to present “positive news” related to COVID-19 (Sagar 2020).

Plainly put, these were the owners and editors who control most of the Indian media at the national and regional levels who were advised to abide by the official narrative and present information as provided to them by the government about COVID-19.

Why would media houses follow government diktat rather than investigating the real state of affairs, unless they have associated business interests? Journalism is considered to be an ethical communicative practice in a democracy, but corporate ownership subverts the autonomy of journalism and the freedom of the press. Unfortunately, this conflict of interest has become a common feature of Indian journalism.

However, even though a majority of Indian media is under corporate control, there are many counter-voices both within and outside this grouping. Thus, the Indian mediascape has become a battleground of ideologies. Many of these alternate counter-voices have raised genuine issues of social concern during the pandemic outbreak.

The prevalence of international media on the internet and small media organizations in the country has played an important role in disseminating factual and more nuanced information, but unfortunately, these platforms do not have the vast access that big corporate media platforms are privy to. 

Media Shows Its Islamophobic Side

Media’s ugliest moment, however, was its coverage of the news surrounding Delhi’s Tablighi Jamaat Markaz (meeting). Many participants had left after the markaz, but many were stranded in the mosque due to the lockdown and were later found infected. However, the media outrage that followed was clearly an extension of the already prejudiced and polarised coverage, as the Tablighi Jamaat was blamed for violating lockdown rules and for “corona jihad,” “Islamic insurrection,” and “corona terrorism.” This is clearly an example of fake news propagated by the mainstream media to further the predominant agenda (BBC 2020; News Laundry 2020). Muslims were also attacked in various parts of the country. 

People of other religious groups also gathered at religious places in large numbers even after the lockdown, but they were not criticised in a similar manner. However, when some journalists did raise questions, they were threatened with legal action (Scroll 2020).

The Need for Greater Accountability 

Since most of the people are at home during the lockdown, it is natural to see a growth in media consumption. People are using various media platforms for COVID-19-related information,   but what is provided is far from factual and does not further a critical rational discourse.

 Some television news channels see a Chinese conspiracy in the spread of COVID-19. In such a “positive” atmosphere, the news related to labourers’ mass exodus and the markaz was mostly presented due to its sensational value.

The pandemic is also threatening an already-deteriorating economy, which also demands a thorough investigation beyond the official narratives. The media, however, has worries related to its own economic situation. Print media, especially, is dealing with a resource crunch, dwindling advertisements, and worries of reduction in circulation and readership. With concerns of job security, inadequate resource support, and abuses faced by the police, many journalists are putting their health at stake to cover the COVID-19 situation. This scenario does little to add to the morale of honest and responsible journalists. Some media houses have already begun cutting wages; an extension in the lockdown can create a new crisis in Indian journalism. 

The role of larger media as observed during the pandemic, however, is not an overnight shift. It has been visible for some time now.  The media has seen phenomenal growth during the last three decades, and India has become one of the biggest media markets in the world.