The constitutional and legal provisions in Indian law for limiting life support

Free full text available from www.ijccm.org Introduction The absence of guidelines for withdrawal and withholding of life support in Indian law is perceived to be the most important obstacle to the practice of appropriate end of life care. In addition, physicians appear to be apprehensive about their civil or criminal liability when called upon to make decisions to limit life-supporting therapies. The following account explores the existing Constitutional and legal provisions that can reasonably be used by physicians in their defense. The article provides illustrative case histories that bring to focus the ethical dilemmas commonly faced by the physician. It also spells out the need for new legislation specifically addressing EOL issues.