Aruna Shanbaug case
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Aruna Ramchandra Shanbaug (1 June 1948 – 18 May 2015), was an Indian nurse who was at the centre of attention in a court case on
euthanasia Euthanasia (from el, εὐθανασία 'good death': εὖ, ''eu'' 'well, good' + θάνατος, ''thanatos'' 'death') is the practice of intentionally ending life to eliminate pain and suffering. Different countries have different eut ...
after spending nearly 42 years in a
vegetative state A persistent vegetative state (PVS) or post-coma unresponsiveness (PCU) is a disorder of consciousness in which patients with severe brain damage are in a state of partial arousal rather than true awareness. After four weeks in a vegetative stat ...
as a result of sexual assault. In 1973, while working as a junior nurse at King Edward Memorial Hospital,
Parel Parel (ISO: Paraḷ, pronunciation: əɾəɭ is a neighbourhood of Mumbai. Parel used to have a number of textile mills, but these have been replaced by commercial office space development. History Originally, Parel was a separate island, ...
,
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
, Shanbaug was sexually assaulted by a ward boy, Sohanlal Bhartha Walmiki, and remained in a vegetative state following the assault. On 24 January 2011, after Shanbaug had been in this state for 37 years, the
Supreme Court of India The Supreme Court of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme judicial authority of India and is the highest court of the Republic of India under the constitution. It is the most senior constitutional court, has the final decision in all legal matters ...
responded to a plea for
euthanasia Euthanasia (from el, εὐθανασία 'good death': εὖ, ''eu'' 'well, good' + θάνατος, ''thanatos'' 'death') is the practice of intentionally ending life to eliminate pain and suffering. Different countries have different eut ...
filed by journalist Pinki Virani, setting up a medical panel to examine her. The court rejected the petition on 7 March 2011. However, in its landmark opinion, it allowed
passive euthanasia Euthanasia (from el, εὐθανασία 'good death': εὖ, ''eu'' 'well, good' + θάνατος, ''thanatos'' 'death') is the practice of intentionally ending life to eliminate pain and suffering. Different countries have different eutha ...
in India. Shanbaug died of
pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
on 18 May 2015, after being in a persistent vegetative state for nearly 42 years.


Biography

Aruna Shanbaug was born in a Kannada brahmin family 1948 in Haldipur,
Uttar Kannada Uttara Kannada is a district in the Indian state of Karnataka. Uttara Kannada District is a major coastal district of Karnataka, and currently holding the title of the largest district in Karnataka. It is bordered by the state of Goa and Bela ...
,
Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...
. She worked as a nurse at the King Edward Memorial Hospital (KEM) in
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
. At the time of the attack, she was engaged to a doctor employed at the same hospital.


Attack

On the night of 27 November 1973, the then 25-year-old Shanbaug was sexually assaulted by Sohanlal Bhartha Walmiki, a sweeper on contract at the King Edward Memorial Hospital. Sohanlal attacked her while she was changing clothes in the hospital basement. He choked her with a dog chain and
raped Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or agai ...
her. This cut off oxygen to her brain, resulting in a brain stem contusion, cervical cord injury, and
cortical blindness Cortical blindness is the total or partial loss of vision in a normal-appearing eye caused by damage to the brain's occipital cortex. Cortical blindness can be acquired or congenital, and may also be transient in certain instances. Acquired cortic ...
. She was discovered at 7:45 am the following morning by a cleaner.


Perpetrator

Sohanlal was caught and convicted of assault and robbery, and he served two concurrent seven-year sentences, being released in 1980. He was not convicted of rape, sexual molestation, or unnatural sexual offense, the last of which could have been punished with life imprisonment. Journalist and human rights activist Pinki Virani attempted to track down Sohanlal; she believes that Sohanlal changed his name after leaving prison but continued to work in a Delhi hospital, and since neither the King Edward Memorial Hospital nor the court that tried Sohanlal kept a file photo of him, Virani's search failed. Other reports claimed he had subsequently died of AIDS or tuberculosis. Shortly after Shanbaug's death was announced, however, Sohanlal was tracked down by Mumbai-based journalist Dnyanesh Chavan from Marathi daily Sakal to his father-in-law's village of Parpa in western
Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
. He was found to be still living, married with a family, and working as a labourer and cleaner in a power station. After his release from prison, he returned to his ancestral village of Dadupur in western Uttar Pradesh before moving to Parpa in the late 1980s. When interviewed, Sohanlal described his version of the assault, claiming it had been committed in a "fit of rage" and that he had no clear recollection of when it had taken place or what he may have done, though he denied raping her and said that it "must have been someone else". Sohanlal, then a hospital janitor, had a difficult relationship with Shanbaug, his superior. He says that "there was an argument and a physical fight" when Shanbaug refused to give him leave to visit his ill mother-in-law and said that she would write him up for poor work.


Nurses' strike

Following the attack, nurses in Mumbai went on
strike Strike may refer to: People * Strike (surname) Physical confrontation or removal *Strike (attack), attack with an inanimate object or a part of the human body intended to cause harm *Airstrike, military strike by air forces on either a suspected ...
demanding improved conditions for Shanbaug and better working conditions for themselves. In the 1980s, the
Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC; IAST: ), also known as the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM), is the governing civic body of Mumbai, the capital city of Maharashtra. It is India's richest municipal corporation. The BMC ...
(BMC) made two attempts to move Shanbaug outside the KEM Hospital to free the bed she had been occupying for seven years. KEM nurses launched a protest, and the BMC abandoned the plan.


Supreme Court case

Shanbaug remained in a
vegetative state A persistent vegetative state (PVS) or post-coma unresponsiveness (PCU) is a disorder of consciousness in which patients with severe brain damage are in a state of partial arousal rather than true awareness. After four weeks in a vegetative stat ...
from 1973 until her death in 2015. On 17 December 2010, the Supreme Court, while admitting the plea to end the life made by activist-journalist Pinki Virani, sought a report on Shanbaug's medical condition from the hospital in Mumbai and the
government of Maharashtra The Government of Maharashtra is the state governing authority for the state of Maharashtra, India. It is a democratically elected government with 288 MLAs elected to the Vidhan Sabha for a five-year term. Maharashtra has a Maharashtra Legisla ...
. On 24 January 2011, a three-member medical panel was established under the Supreme Court's directive. After examining Shanbaug, the panel concluded that she met "most of the criteria of being in a permanent vegetative state". On 7 March 2011, the Supreme Court, in a landmark judgement, issued a set of broad guidelines legalizing
passive euthanasia Euthanasia (from el, εὐθανασία 'good death': εὖ, ''eu'' 'well, good' + θάνατος, ''thanatos'' 'death') is the practice of intentionally ending life to eliminate pain and suffering. Different countries have different eutha ...
in India. These guidelines for passive euthanasia—''i.e.'' the decision to withdraw treatment, nutrition, or water—establish that the decision to discontinue life support must be taken by parents, spouse, or other close relatives, or in the absence of them, by a "next friend". The decision also requires court approval. In its judgement, the court declined to recognize Virani as the "next friend" of Aruna Shanbaug, and instead treated the KEM hospital staff as the "next friend." Since the KEM Hospital staff wished that Aruna Shanbaug be allowed to live, Virani's petition to withdraw life support was declined. However, the court further stipulated that the KEM hospital staff, with the approval of the Bombay High Court, had the option of withdrawing life support if they changed their mind:
However, assuming that the KEM hospital staff at some future time changes its mind, in our opinion in such a situation the KEM hospital would have to apply to the Bombay High Court for approval of the decision to withdraw life support.
On 25 February 2014, while hearing a PIL filed by NGO
Common Cause Common Cause is a watchdog group based in Washington, D.C., with chapters in 35 states. It was founded in 1970 by John W. Gardner, a Republican, who was the former Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare in the administration of President L ...
, a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court of India said that the prior opinion in the ''Aruna Shanubaug'' case was based on a wrong interpretation of the Constitution Bench's opinion in ''Gian Kaur v. State of Punjab''. The court also determined that the opinion was internally inconsistent because although it held that euthanasia can be allowed only by an act of the legislature, it then proceeded to judicially establish euthanasia guidelines. The court referred the issue to a larger Constitution Bench for resolution, writing:
In view of the inconsistent opinions rendered in Aruna Shanbaug (supra) and also considering the important question of law involved which needs to be reflected in the light of social, legal, medical and constitutional perspective, it becomes extremely important to have a clear enunciation of law. Thus, in our cogent opinion, the question of law involved requires careful consideration by a Constitution Bench of this Court for the benefit of humanity as a whole.


Response

Following the Supreme Court decision rejecting the plea, the nursing staff at the hospital—who had opposed the petition and had been looking after Shanbaug since she had lapsed into a vegetative state—distributed sweets and cut a cake to celebrate what they termed her "rebirth". A senior nurse at the hospital later said, "We have to tend to her just like a small child at home. She only keeps aging like any of us, does not create any problems for us. We take turns looking after her and we love to care for her. How can anybody think of taking her life?" Pinki Virani's lawyer, Shubhangi Tulli, decided not to file an appeal, saying "the two-judge ruling was final till the SC decided to constitute a larger bench to re-examine the issue." Pinki Virani said, "Because of this woman who has never received justice, no other person in a similar position will have to suffer for more than three and a half decades."


Death

A few days before her death, Shanbaug was diagnosed with
pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
. She was moved to the medical intensive care unit (MICU) of the hospital and put on a ventilator. She died the morning of 18 May 2015. Her funeral was performed by the hospital nurses and other staff members.


In popular culture

A non-fiction book titled ''Aruna's Story'' was written about the case by Pinki Virani in 1998. Duttakumar Desai wrote the Marathi play ''Katha Arunachi'' in 1994–95, which was performed at college level and subsequently staged by
Vinay Apte Vinay Apte (17 June 1951 – 7 December 2013) was an Indian film and television actor. He acted in several Marathi movies and television shows in his almost 40-year-old career. He has also acted in Hindi movies such as '' Chandni Bar'', '' Ek ...
in 2002. A Gujarati fiction novel, ''Jad Chetan'', was written by popular novelist
Harkisan Mehta Harkisan Laldas Mehta (1928–1998) was a Gujarati author and journalist from India. He was the editor of a weekly, '' Chitralekha''. He wrote several novels. Life Mehta was born in Mahuva near Bhavnagar, Gujarat on 25 May 1928. He completed hi ...
in 1985 based on Aruna Shanbaug's case.
Anumol Anumol is an Indian actress, predominantly acting in Malayalam and Tamil films. She appeared in Malayalam movies such as ''Chayilyam'' (2014), ''Ivan Megharoopan'' (2012), '' Akam'' (2011), ''Vedivazhipadu'' (2013) and ''Jamna Pyari'' (2015). ...
played Aruna in the 2014
Malayalam film Malayalam cinema is an Indian cinema, Indian film industry of Malayalam-language motion pictures. It is based in Kochi, Kerala, India. The films produced in Malayalam cinema are known for their cinematography and story-driven plots. In 1982, ...
''Maram Peyyumbol''. Aruna's story was also portrayed in the '' Crime Patrol'' series of Sony TV. In June 2020, the Ullu web series named "KASAK" was released, which is loosely based on this case. The role of Sheetal, Shanbaug's stand-in, is portrayed by
Ihana Dhillon Ihana Dhillon is an Indian actress, active in both the Bollywood and Punjabi film industries. Dhillon made her Bollywood debut with the movie ''Hate Story 4'' (2018). Her multilingual abilities have helped her achieve success in Punjabi movi ...
.


Further reading

* ''Aruna's Story: the true account of a rape and its aftermath'', by Pinki Virani. Viking, 1998 *''Arunachi Goshta'' (Aruna's story) , by Pinki Virani, 1998, Translator : Meena Karnik. Mehta Publishing House. 1998


References


External links


Court ruling, Aruna Shanbaug vs. Union of India, 7 March 2011
at ''
Supreme Court of India The Supreme Court of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme judicial authority of India and is the highest court of the Republic of India under the constitution. It is the most senior constitutional court, has the final decision in all legal matters ...
''
Pinki Virani's Interview - 13 June 2008
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Shanbaug, Aruna 1948 births 1973 crimes in India 2011 in case law 2011 in India 2015 deaths Crime in Mumbai Health law in India Indian case law Indian Hindus Indian women nurses Medical controversies in India Rape in India Violence against women in India Deaths from pneumonia in India Incidents of violence against women People with hypoxic and ischemic brain injuries People with disorders of consciousness People from Uttara Kannada