Human rights of people with mental illness: Provisions made in mental healthcare act 2017

Pooja  Sharma; Ankita  Singh; Dipanjan  Bhattacharjee

doi:10.29120/ijpsw.2020.v11.i2.209

Authors

Pooja Sharma Junior Resident, Department of Psychiatry, Central Institute of Psychiatry, Ranchi, Jharkhand, India
Ankita Singh PhD Scholar, Department of Clinical Psychology, Central Institute of Psychiatry, Ranchi, Jharkhand, India
Dipanjan Bhattacharjee Associate Professor and In-charge, Department of Psychiatric Social Work Central Institute of Psychiatry, Ranchi, Jharkhand, India

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29120/ijpsw.2020.v11.i2.209

Abstract

Human rights of people with mental illness are very frequently undermined or even violated by individuals, groups and agencies. Human rights are understood as those rights which are applicable to all human beings, regardless of race, sex, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, or any other parameters. Human rights entail the right to life and liberty, freedom from slavery, discrimination and torture, freedom of speech and expression, the right to work and education, and many more. The Mental Health Care Act, 2017 (MHCA 2017) has replaced the Mental Health Act, 1987 for strengthening the rights and wellbeing of mentally ill people and making mental healthcare services more humane and complying to human rights of those people. This article aims to discuss how the Mental Healthcare Act 2017 is beneficial in protecting the human rights of mentally ill people in India.

Keywords: Mental health, mental healthcare act 2017, human rights, mental illness

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Human rights of people with mental illness: Provisions made in mental healthcare act 2017

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