‘Now sleep forever my son’… End of 13 years of suffering: Before euthanasia, eyes will be filled with tears after seeing the picture of the son in the mother’s lap.

New Delhi/Ghaziabad: The date of March 11, 2026 has been recorded as a very emotional and historic turning point in the judicial history of India. The Supreme Court has given permission for ‘passive euthanasia’ to 32-year-old Harish Rana of Ghaziabad. This is the first case in the country where the court has ordered removal of life support from a person for a dignified death. Harish was in ‘permanent vegetative state’ (coma) for the last 13 years and there was no scope for improvement in his condition.

Instructions to AIIMS: Life support will be removed in a phased manner

The bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice KV Vishwanathan gave this decision based on human feelings and medical reports. The court has directed the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) to immediately admit Harish and gradually remove life support systems (such as tracheostomy and feeding tube) from his body. The court believes that when life is dependent on machines and there is no end to the pain, then a person has the right to die with dignity.

A heart-wrenching picture of a mother’s love and helplessness.

After the decision, a picture of Harish’s mother Nirmala Rana is going viral on social media, which has brought tears to the eyes of crores of people. In the picture, the mother is sitting at the bedside of her son and caressing his forehead. The pain in his eyes and the lines on his face tell the story of the 4,586-day struggle he fought to save his son. Today the same Mamta is bidding farewell with a heavy heart to free her son from that unbearable pain.

An accident took away the happiness: The mountain of sorrows started from 2013

This sad story of Harish Rana started in the year 2013. At that time he was studying B.Tech in Punjab University. In an unfortunate accident he fell from the fourth floor of his PG, suffering serious injuries to his head and body. This injury made him a victim of ‘quadriplegia’ (paralysis of all four limbs). For the last 13 years, he could neither speak, walk nor breathe without machines.

Difficult decision of parents: “Sleep peacefully now son”

Harish’s father Ashok Rana and mother Nirmala gave everything they had in the treatment of their son. But when the report of AIIMS doctors made it clear that there was zero chance of Harish’s recovery, the parents approached the Supreme Court with a heavy heart. He said in the petition that he could no longer see his son suffering like this. As soon as the court’s decision came, the father became emotional, while the mother explained herself by saying that this would be the biggest relief for her son.