File fresh plea to make all mental hosp parties: SC to lawyer

New Delhi, Aug 22 (PTI) Supreme Court today asked alawyer, who has filed a PIL for the release of about 300persons from mental hospitals alleging they were stilllanguishing despite being cured, to file a fresh plea to makeall such hospitals in the country as parties to the ongoingsuit. "You file an impleadment application, then we will hearit (PIL)," a bench comprising Chief Justice T S Thakur andJustices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud said. The court had earlier issued notices to six states onthe PIL, filed by lawyer Gaurav Kumar Bansal, seeking releaseof nearly 300 persons, who are still languishing in mentalhospitals in Uttar Pradesh despite being cured of theirailments. Today, the lawyer showed some "horrible photographs ofmentally ill patients staying in a pathetic conditions inBehrampore Mental Hospital" and sought a direction that allmental hospitals be made parties to the ongoing petition. The apex court had earlier sought responses from UttarPradesh, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Kerala, Jammu and Kashmir andMeghalaya on the PIL seeking release of people, now fit fordischarge from mental hospitals, and steps to ensure theirsocial security post-discharge. The PIL has alleged that many underprivileged personswere still languishing in mental hospitals despite being curedand that there was no policy in place to ensure their well-being after release. The plea also referred to responses received under RTIwith regard to the release of persons languishing in mentalhospitals at Bareilly, Varanasi and Agra in Uttar Pradesh evenafter being cured. The queries, which were posed under transparency law toMental Health Hospital, Bareilly, Institute of Mental Healthand Hospital, Agra and Mental Hospital, Varanasi, pertained tonames, residential address and age of the patients who arenow normal and waiting for discharge from hospitals. Bansal had also sought information about the year inwhich the patients were declared fit for the discharge. The plea has sought issuance of directions to states andothers to "forthwith make arrangements to shift the patients,who are absolutely normal and are fit for discharge, from themental hospitals to any other secure place like Old Age Homesetc." PTI SJK MNL RKSARC