Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University, Katra, celebrated the Constitution Day of India on 26th November 2017. On this occasion, a panel discussion on the topic “Article 21 of Indian Constitution and Passive Euthanasia” was organized. The panelists included Dr. Varun K. Tripathi, Dean, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Dr. Anil K. Tewari, Mr. Sumanta S. Sharma, Dr. Ashoka K. Tarai, Asst. Profs., School of Philosophy & Culture, Mr. Sushain Raina, PhD student of Philosophy, Mr. Gaurav Sharma, 2nd year M. Tech student of Electronics and Communication Engineering, Mr. Aagman Joshi, 3rd year B. Tech student of Electronics and Communication Engineering, and Mr. Shubham Upadhyay, 2nd year B. Tech student of Computer Science and Engineering. The discussion began with a brief presentation on the theme by Dr. Anil Tewari. In his delivery, he highlighted the relevance of Article 21 which guarantees the Protection of Life and Personal Liberty so that the State cannot not deprived anyone of his or her life or personal liberty arbitrarily without following the procedure established by law. He mentioned certain leading cases through which the meaning of “right to life” is gradually evolved through judicial decisions. In this context, the discussion on passive euthanasia (giving terminally ill patients the right to withhold or withdraw medical treatment to herself or himself and allow nature to take its own course) was introduced. The concepts such as active and passive euthanasia, whether the right to life includes the right to die or be killed, living will, moral and non-moral considerations on these matters occupied the central point of discussion. Faculty members and students of different schools of the University participated in the discussion. The event was concluded with a vote of thanks by Dr. Varun Tripathi.
