65 mentally ill people kept naked for 6 months in Bengal hospital, say rights activists

HYDERABAD: Rights activists have taken to Facebook and Twitter with photos of persons with mental illness that they claim have been kept without any clothes for the last 6 months in a government-run mental hospital in Behrampore town of West Bengal.

They have demanded a judicial intervention into the human rights violation issue and said they would approach the National Human Rights Commission and the Supreme Court within a day or two.

The rights activists have tried to the bring the issue to the notice of the PMO, official handle of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Minister of Health and Family Welfare J P Nadda by tweeting to them.

"In the female ward, some 25 inmates are kept nude and in male ward, some 40 are kept without clothes since the past six months," said Kolkata-based mental health rights organisation Anjali founder Ratnaboli Ray.

The rights organisation has claimed that despite bringing the issue to the notice of state department of health and family welfare and subsequent visit by Chief Medical Officer of Health, Murshidabad district, Subhasish Saha, not much has changed in the wards.

"In spite visit of Director, Health Service, Government of West Bengal, Dr Biswaranjan Satpathy five months back, the inmates are kept naked besides being physically abused," she alleged.

Advocate Gaurav Bansal in New Delhi said he would file the complaints. "I will file a complaint at the National Human Rights Commission on Tuesday or would approach the Supreme Court on Wednesday," he said.

"Keeping the inmates nude violates several fundamental, sexual and international rights laid down by the UNCRPD," he added, adding that the government is bound to follow up on the issue when brought to their notice. "No follow up on the issue shows their insensitivity," he added.

Meanwhile, CMOH Saha did not refute or confirm the allegation but invited journalists from all over West Bengal to come to the hospital and check for themselves.

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