Administration of Delhi mental hospital transferred to the Central Government

Sabareesh Pillay | School of Law, University of Mumbai Thane Sub-Campus | 6th August 2020

B.R Kapoor Vs Union Of India

FACTS:

In this case, a writ petition filed in 1990 in the Supreme Court that a Mental hospital located in Shahdara, Delhi under the Delhi government was being severely mismanaged and a petition regarding that was filed in the Supreme Court. The court appointed a committee of experts consisting of four eminent psychiatrists to visit the hospital and check and make submit a report on the treatment given to the patients and the conditions and atmosphere of the hospital.

ISSUES:

The issues reported by the expert committee were that the patients were not treated properly in the hospital and there was gross mismanagement. The existing water facilities, sanitary conditions, food and dining facilities were deemed to be unsatisfactory by the committee of experts that were appointed by the court. It also suggested improving hospital services with reference to emergency service, ambulance service, in-patient service, location of cells, investigation facilities, treatment facilities, staffing pattern, in-service training, training of medical and nursing personnel, ill-treatment of patients by staff. The committee also revealed that many patients had suicidal tendencies.

RULES:

The Public Interest Litigation (PIL) Writ petition was filed under article 32 of the Constitution of India.

ANALYSIS:

The Supreme Court bench of Justice M. Venkatachaliah and R.Misra directed the Delhi Government to make amends and rectify the defects pointed out by the expert committee. The Delhi government took 3 years to submit a counter affidavit which the court had directed the Delhi government to submit. The committee had given 35 recommendations on how the mismanagement could be resolved and how it should be further improved. Some of these recommendations included an effective way of handling Mentally-ill patients and how a visitor should be allowed to meet the patients. The court gave the example of a mental hospital at Ranchi, wherein the very reputed hospital had been deteriorating due to the mismanagement by the state and then it was transferred to the central government for better management. The court also gave the example of NIMHANS at Bangalore and that the institution could be modelled after it and the Hospital at Sahadra could be made a national hospital coming under the administration of the central government.

CONCLUSION:

The bench gave the judgement that the Mental Hospital located at the capital of the country should be run by the Union of India and not the Delhi Administration. The takeover of this Hospital by the Union of India would have certain natural advantages. We are of the view that the Mental Hospital located at Shahdara should be taken over by the Union of India from the Delhi Administration and modelled on the lines of similar psychiatric speciality obtaining at institution run by NIMHANS at Bangalore. Possibly with the allocation of more funds a wider range of modern amenities and treatment facilities geared up with modern equipment and super-specialist talent can be made available so that when this large country of ours would be marching into the twenty-first century, a modern well-equipped mental hospital- the Court said.