NHRC takes suo motu cognisance after children with pneumonia branded by faith healer in MP

New Delhi, Oct 6 (IANS) The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has taken suo motu cognisance of a media report that three children suffering from pneumonia were branded with a hot iron rod by a faith healer in Madhya Pradesh's Jhabua district.

Reportedly, the condition of one of the children is said to be serious.

Doctors have confirmed that the children were suffering from pneumonia and bore burn marks on their bodies.

The apex human rights body has said that the contents of the news report, if true, raise serious issues of violation of human rights.

The NHRC has issued notices to the Jhabua District Magistrate Neha Meena and the Superintendent of Police Padam Vilochan Shukla, calling for a detailed report on the matter within two weeks.

According to media reports carried on September 25, the parents of the children themselves had taken them to the faith healer.

Out of the three children who were branded with hot iron rods, two are infants who are two-months-old.

Following the incident, their health deteriorated significantly, and they were rushed to the Jhabua District Hospital in critical condition.

All three children are currently on oxygen support, and one girl has been referred to Dahod for further medical care.

The Madhya Pradesh Police are actively investigating to determine who branded the children and where these acts took place.

Established under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, the NHRC, an autonomous statutory body, is an embodiment of India's concern for the promotion and protection of human rights.

Its primary role is to protect and promote human rights, defined as the rights relating to life, liberty, equality, and dignity of individuals guaranteed by the Constitution or embodied in international covenants and enforceable by courts in India.

The apex human rights body has the power to take suo motu action based on media reports, public knowledge or other sources, without receiving a formal complaint of human rights violations.

--IANS

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