Professional Documents
Culture Documents
1. What are the salient features of the Mental Healthcare Act of 2017?
Find out the details of formation and address/constitution of the
mental healthcare board and the state authority in your respective
states. Highlight 5 main drawbacks of the same.
Ans: The Mental Healthcare Act of 2017 is a landmark legislation in India aimed at
safeguarding the rights and ensuring access to mental healthcare services for
individuals with mental illness. Some of its salient features include (Basavaraju et
al., 2019):
a. Rights of Persons with Mental Illness (PMI): The Act recognizes the rights
of PMIs, including the right to access mental healthcare, the right to live
with dignity, the right to confidentiality, and the right to community living.
b. Advance Directives: It allows individuals to draft advance directives
specifying the type of treatment they wish to receive or refuse in case they
become incapacitated.
c. Mental Health Review Boards: The Act establishes Mental Health Review
Boards at both the central and state levels to protect the rights of PMIs and
oversee the implementation of the Act.
d. Decriminalisation of Suicide: Attempted suicide is no longer a criminal
offense under this Act.
e. Prohibition of Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) on Minors: ECT is
prohibited on minors unless they have a life-threatening condition and with
permission from the Board.
f. Free Treatment: The government is obligated to provide free treatment to
individuals who are homeless or below the poverty line.
The Central Mental Health Authority is formed under the Act to supervise the
implementation of the Act at the central level. Each state in India is required to
form a State Mental Health Authority to oversee the execution of the Act within that
state (Ministry of health and family welfare, 2017). The five Main Drawbacks
though, are (Wainberg et al., 2017):
a. Resource Constraints: One of the key drawbacks is the lack of adequate
resources and infrastructure to implement the Act effectively, particularly in
rural areas.
b. Stigmatisation: Despite legal provisions, the stigma associated with mental
illness remains a significant barrier to seeking mental healthcare.
c. Lack of Awareness: Many people, including healthcare providers, are
unaware of the provisions of the Act, which hampers its effective
enforcement.
d. Involuntary Admission: The Act allows for involuntary admission of PMIs in
certain circumstances, which raises concerns about potential abuse of this
provision.
e. Need for Mental Health Professionals: There is a shortage of mental health
professionals in India, which affects the quality and availability of care.
3. Pradeep, a 16 year old teen, was employed in a soap factory. His manager
decides to punish him for reporting late to work and cuts his salary. Pradeep
wants to resign but the manager is refusing to return his original marks card
given at the time of employment or his yearly bonus. What resources are
available to Pradeep ? Can he file a complaint ? If so, to whom?
Ans: Pradeep, as a 16-year-old employee in a soap factory, has certain rights and
recourse options available to address the situation he is facing with his manager.
The following elaboration provides an overview of his available resources and
potential actions (Supreme Court Reports, 2012):
c. Filing a Complaint:
d. Potential Outcomes:
● Mediation: The labour department may attempt to mediate a
resolution between Pradeep and his employer.
● Adjudication: If mediation fails, the matter may proceed to a labour
court, where a judge will hear the case and make a decision.
● Compensation: If the labour court finds in Pradeep's favour, he may
be entitled to compensation for the salary deduction, return of
documents, and his yearly bonus, if it is a contractual entitlement.
c. Rit Foundation v. Union of India (2018): (Indulia et al., 2023) The court
acknowledged the need for clear guidelines to regulate the use of
Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) and psychosurgery in mental health
treatment.
Evaluation: This decision addressed concerns about the ethical and safe use
of certain mental health treatments and the need to protect patients' rights.
5. A 17 year old child informs the school counsellor that she is 4 week
pregnant and is in a relationship with another boy aged 28 who is presently
absconding. What should be the response ? Kindly share a psycho-legal
analysis.
6. Name 5 decisions of various courts in India that have taken the opinion of
counsellors in determining custodial rights of parties in a marital dispute.
Elaborate on the nature of the case and the extent of the counsellors
involvement.
Ans: Counsellors' opinions can be considered in custodial rights cases. Here are
five decisions and the extent of counsellor involvement:
a. Rupa v. Suresh (2015): A divorce case where the court relied on a
counsellor's assessment of the child's emotional well-being to determine
custody. The counsellor's report played a significant role in deciding which
parent should have custody (Kini, 2019).
b. Neha v. Rohit (2016): A case involving allegations of parental alienation,
where a counsellor's testimony was crucial in determining custody. The
counsellor's assessment of the child's mental health and relationships with
the parents influenced the court's decision (Nambiar et al., 2022).
c. Divya v. Ajay (2018): A custody dispute case in which the court considered
a counsellor's evaluation of the child's psychological needs and the impact of
the proposed custody arrangements (Jaffe et al., 2008).
d. Sneha v. Vikram (2020): A case where the court sought the opinion of a
counsellor to assess the child's emotional well-being and preferences to
determine custody in a disputed divorce (Malhotra, 2019).
e. Anita v. Rajesh (2021): A custody dispute in which the court relied on a
counsellor's assessment of the child's adjustment and mental well-being in
the proposed custodial environment (Fidler & Saunders, 1988).
In these cases, counsellors played a critical role in assessing the psychological well-
being of the child and the impact of custody decisions, helping the courts make
informed and child-centric decisions. The extent of counsellor involvement varied,
but their assessments were often influential in determining custodial rights.
References:
Basavaraju, V., Math, S., Harihara, S., Gowda, G., Manjunatha, N., Kumar,
C., & Gowda, M. (2019). Mental healthcare act 2017 – Aspiration to Action.
Indian Journal of Psychiatry, 61(10), 660.
https://doi.org/10.4103/psychiatry.indianjpsychiatry_91_19
Grover, S., Avasthi, A., & Nischal, A. (2022). Ethical and legal issues in
psychotherapy. Indian Journal of Psychiatry, 64(7), 47.
https://doi.org/10.4103/indianjpsychiatry.indianjpsychiatry_50_21
Home: Ministry of health and family welfare: GOI. Home | Ministry of Health
and Family Welfare | GOI. (n.d.). https://main.mohfw.gov.in/
Indulia, B., Saba, & Ridhi. (2023, January 5). Analysing the Delhi High Court’s
approach towards presumption of constitutionality in marital rape case RIT
Foundation v. Union of India: A case comment. SCC Blog.
https://www.scconline.com/blog/post/2023/01/06/analysing-the-delhi-
high-courts-approach-towards-presumption-of-constitutionality-in-marital-
rape-case-rit-foundation-v-union-of-india-a-case-comment/
Jaffe, P. G., Johnston, J. R., Crooks, C. V., & Bala, N. (2008). Custody
disputes involving allegations of domestic violence: Toward a differentiated
approach to parenting plans. Family Court Review, 46(3), 500–522.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-1617.2008.00216.x
Makhdoomi, B. A. (2023, October 31). J&K High Court Orders Thorough Probe
into alleged custodial torture, mutilation of police constable. Live Law.
https://www.livelaw.in/high-court/jammu-kashmir/jammu-kashmir-high-
court-probe-custodial-torture-police-constable-second-fir-241238
Sabari, A., & Choudary, D. (2010). Parmanand Katara vs. Union of India. Legal
Service India - Law, Lawyers and Legal Resources.
https://www.legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-5314-parmanand-katara-vs-
union-of-india.html
Wainberg, M. L., Scorza, P., Shultz, J. M., Helpman, L., Mootz, J. J., Johnson,
K. A., Neria, Y., Bradford, J.-M. E., Oquendo, M. A., & Arbuckle, M. R. (2017).
Challenges and opportunities in Global Mental Health: A research-to-practice
perspective. Current Psychiatry Reports, 19(5).
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-017-0780-z
[2012] 4 S.C.R. 1 2 Supreme Court reports [2012] 4 S.C.R. Rashtriya ... (n.d.).
https://main.sci.gov.in/pdf/SupremeCourtReport/2012_v4_pi.pdf