A retired government schoolteacher who advocated for euthanasia has finally been allowed to end his sufferings. 85-year-old H B Karibasamma will become the first beneficiary to avail Karnataka’s right to die with dignity. The government of Karnataka will issue a circular regarding providing the right to die with dignity to patients with terminal illness, on January 30.
The initiative of the Karnataka government has brought relief to Karibasamma who is filled with hope. What made Karibasamma asking for death was a battle with an illness she fought until her last strength and completed this long journey with great resolve. She held against a slipped disc for over 30 years and was recently diagnosed with cancer.
She fought a dual battle, one with her disease and another one for the right to die with dignity in India. In her many attempts, she wrote letters to high dignitaries from chief minister to the President, including the Prime Minister and the Supreme Court.
Euthanasia has been legalised in India by the Supreme Court in 2018 but in Karnataka it has been allowed only now. The final implementation will be done after clearance from the state health and family welfare minister, Dinesh Gundu Rao. Rao has clarified that the right to die “is applicable only to those who are on life-support and non-responding to life-sustaining treatment”.
“Many are on the list, waiting to avail this right, but I wish to be the first [in Karnataka],” Karibasamma said. She presently lives in an old-age home in Davanagere with her husband. This fight had Karibasamma lose very valuable aspects of her life. She lost her property, finances, and relationships in its pursuit, but even this significant loss never deterred her belief that patients with terminal illnesses should be allowed a dignified death.
Choosing to reside in a care home for the past 20 years, Karibasamma has also detached herself from material possessions, donating her final savings of Rs 6 lakh to support Border Security Force (BSF) personnel. Without children, she shared that her advocacy for the right to die with dignity caused a rift between her and her family.
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