R. Thirumeni, 54, a tailor from Srimushnam Taluk in Cuddalore district, had approached the Madras High Court in August this year seeking permission to kill his 10-year-old son T. Paavendhan, suffering from spastic diplegia (a form of cerebral palsy), by “withdrawing all forms of food, nutrition and medicines”.
However, the court did not show any urgency in dealing with his case and decided to go slow on the issue. After obtaining expert opinion from a team of medical specialists on his health condition, it subjected the child to a remedial massage therapy, and surprisingly, he has now begun to respond well to the treatment.
“This kind of improvement shown by a boy who has been lying in a permanent vegetative state (before the treatment) is a miracle for which Dr. P. Umamaheswari has to be appreciated,” a Division Bench of Justices N. Kirubakaran and S. Baskaran observed in an interim order passed in the case on Wednesday. The doctor had come forward voluntarily to the court early this month seeking permission to subject the child to trigger point therapy and the judges too persuaded the parents of the child to give it a shot since it was the petitioner’s case that no doctor had ever expressed any hope of complete recovery of the child’s condition.
Elaborate protocol
The treatment began on October 13 and after 10 days, the petitioner reported that his son had been showing signs of progress. “It is heartening to hear the father, who had approached this court seeking a direction for mercy killing, state that there is a ray of hope for his son to recuperate from the treatment,” the judges said. They were told by Dr. Umamaheswari that the child had begun to sit on the bed with minimal support, recognise sounds better, sleep well and view his surroundings by following an elaborate protocol, beginning with the stimulation of spinal extension muscles and pelvic floor muscles through hands-on techniques.
After recording her submissions, the judges adjourned further hearing on the case to November 8. In the meantime, Assistant Solicitor General G. Karthikeyan and Special Government Pleader J. Balagopal were asked to find out the possibility of the Centre as well as the State government providing financial assistance to the petitioner.
The writ petitioner, also a father of two girl children, had in an affidavit filed in support of his writ petition, claimed that no asylum or home of any kind was willing to give any kind of shelter or palliative care to his son. However, now it was reported to the court that the doctor herself had provided free boarding and lodging to the parents too.
