Ghaziabad, March 16 – With meditative chants and a loving hand on his forehead, Harish Rana, who has been in a coma for more than 12 years, was prepared by his family for his final journey from their home in Ghaziabad to AIIMS Delhi, where he will pass away.
The 31-year-old is the first person in India to be given permission for passive euthanasia. In its landmark ruling last week, the Supreme Court also directed AIIMS-Delhi to ensure that life support is withdrawn in a manner that maintains dignity.
The medical institute has initiated protocols to implement the court's verdict, a process that will take about two to three weeks, insiders said.
A specialized medical team, led by Dr. Seema Mishra, head of the department of anesthesia and palliative medicine, has been constituted for this purpose, the first of its kind in India.
The team comprises doctors from departments of neurosurgery, onco-anaesthesia, palliative medicine, and psychiatry.
Harish has been shifted to AIIMS, and his family is preparing to say goodbye to the young man who fell from a fourth-floor balcony in 2013 and suffered severe head injuries. He has been in a coma since.
A video from the Rana home in Ghaziabad shows relatives offering prayers as a member of the Brahma Kumaris places a 'tilak' on Harish's forehead and says softly, "Forgiving everyone and asking forgiveness from everyone. Now sleep. It's okay."
Sister Lovely from the Mohan Nagar Seva Kendra in Ghaziabad, a member of the Brahma Kumaris based at Mount Abu, told
The entire spiritual process took place at the Rana's Ghaziabad home just before he was shifted to AIIMS on Saturday, Sister Lovely later told
She said that four sisters had visited Rana's household.
"It was a surreal experience for us as well. We prayed for him and told him that whatever was being done was in his best interest, to relieve him of his suffering and to set him free. We urged the soul 'udd jao'... fly away peacefully," she said.
Earlier, explaining the rituals Sister Lovely and others offered at Rana's home, Komal said, "She is following a ritual with the words that mean he (Harish) leave the world in a happy state, seeking and giving forgiveness... it is part of a meditative chant that comforts the soul and eases the entire process of the soul merging with the sublime."
She added that the family has been deeply spiritually inclined, which helped them endure the difficult 13-year period of caring for Harish.
"Although the couple has another son, advancing age had begun to worry them about who would look after Harish in the future once they were no longer able to," she said, adding that members of the organisation counselled the family during this phase.
The family is reluctant to talk. Harish's father Ashok Rana who had earlier told