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A bench of Justices PS Narasimha and R Mahadevan said the rights body should monitor the petition filed by lawyer Gaurav Kumar Bansal in 2018.
The top court took on record an affidavit filed by the Center and said that statutory authorities have been constituted to implement the Mental Health Care Act, 2017.
However, it noted that the petitioner has sought several other “prayers”. These will also be monitored by NHRC.
The top court had earlier said that Parliament enacted the Mental Health Care Act in 2017 which contemplates the establishment of a Central Mental Health Authority (CMHA), State Mental Health Authorities (SMHA) and Mental Health Review Board (MHRB). On March 2, it directed the Center to file an affidavit indicating the establishment and functioning of the three bodies.
The affidavit should also show statutory and mandatory appointments to the authority and review board.
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On January 3, 2019, the apex court issued notice to the Centre, all states and Union Territories on a plea which claimed that non-implementation of the provisions of the Act by states and Union Territories is a gross violation of the life and liberty of citizens.
The PIL argued that persons suffering from mental illnesses were chained at a faith-based mental asylum in Uttar Pradesh’s Badaun district in violation of the provisions of the Mental Health Care Act 2017. The court examined the photographs of such patients and called it a matter of great concern.
The bench said that shackling people suffering from mental illness is a violation of their rights under Article 21 of the Constitution, which deals with life and personal liberty and their dignity cannot be compromised.
According to the PIL, shackling a person suffering from mental illness is a gross violation of the provision of the 2017 Act which says that every such person shall not only have the right to live with dignity but also be protected from cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.
The petitioner cited the National Mental Health Survey 2016 to claim that about 14 per cent of India’s population requires active mental health intervention and about 2 per cent of Indians suffer from serious mental disorders.