US citizen's death wish raises storm

Seeking moksha

But the desire of a US citizen, who is suffering from an incurable disease,  to die in the Himalayas and the pledge by his son to fulfil the wish of his father has prompted a resident of Uttar Pradesh’s Pratapgarh district to shoot off a query under the RTI Act to the prime minister questioning the desire.

Shiva Kant Rai, the applicant, in his query has sought to know under which provisions of the law has the US citizen been allowed to bring his father to India. The query went on to ask further whether the disease will not spread to India if such a permission was granted. He has also sought to know whether medical experts were consulted before allowing the patient to enter India. Rai has urged the prime minister not allow the valleys of Himalayas to become graveyards of foreigners.

Peter Dixon, a US citizen  who has been suffering from Huntington’s disease which cannot be cured, has expressed his desire to die in the valleys of the Himalayas. Peter’s son Jonathan has vowed to fulfill his father’s wish and has brought him to Manali in Himachal Pradesh, where Peter is awaiting his death. Huntington’s disease is an incurable neurodegenerative genetic disorder that affects muscle coordination and some cognitive functions,  which become noticeable in the middle ages.