In a shocking report from Odisha, a 27-year-old man has been chained for the past 20 years at his village home as his poor parents are unable to spend money for treating his mental illness.
The National Human Rights Commission has issued notice to the Chief Secretary and the Jagatsinghpur district magistrate, seeking a report within four weeks.
The NHRC said if media reports of the incident at Kiyada village were true, then the human rights of the man, Sanjaya Gudiya, were seriously violated.
The news clipping was forwarded to the Commission by its Special Rapporteur, Damodar Sarangi.
Satyasundar Barik reports from Bhubaneswar
Sanjay’s family members said the youth would make a nuisance of himself in the village. “Parents were left with no option but to chain him,” they said.
“Everybody in the country has a right to life. Right to life means right to healthcare also. Confining a person in chains for so many years is something that the commission disapproves,” Mr. Sarangi told The Hindu here.
Mr. Sarangi said the State should take care of the mentally ill youth whose parents were not in a position to bear medical expenses.
