Kochi: A 76-year-old retired doctor, Martha Jacob from Kadavanthra, Ernakulam, who has been largely bedridden since suffering a stroke in 2023, has filed a petition in the Kerala High Court requesting the appointment of a custodian for her living will. The petition was filed through advocate Jikku Seban George.
Jacob, who previously worked with the World Health Organization and the United Nations Population Fund, urged the court to direct the Kochi Corporation to designate a custodian for her living will. This legal document outlines her medical preferences in the event she becomes unable to make decisions independently.
Justice P. Gopinath, while hearing the plea, sought the state government’s response and scheduled the next hearing for December 2.
In her petition, Jacob cited the Supreme Court’s 2023 guidelines for living wills, which require a copy of the will to be submitted to a nominated competent officer of the relevant local self-government body, designated as its custodian. Jacob executed her living will in 2023, detailing directives such as avoiding life-support machines, CPR, or extraordinary medical interventions if she were to enter a comatose state.
However, when Jacob approached the Kochi Corporation, she was informed that no competent officer had been appointed to act as custodian, prompting her to seek legal intervention.
As per the Supreme Court’s guidelines, if the executor of a living will becomes terminally ill, undergoes prolonged medical treatment without hope of recovery, and loses decision-making capacity, the treating physician must verify the directive’s authenticity in consultation with the custodian. Additionally, two independent medical boards must confirm the patient’s terminal condition before further steps can be taken.
Jacob stressed that the lack of a designated custodian at the local self-government level prevents the full implementation of these procedures. She further highlighted that the Supreme Court has affirmed that the right to die with dignity is encompassed under the fundamental right to life guaranteed by Article 21 of the Constitution. This includes ensuring a dignified process of dying for terminally ill patients or those in a persistent vegetative state with no hope of recovery.
