Capital punishment is criticised as a ‘cruel practice’ by all who believe in the sanctity of human life; it is even more brutal for those who might not understand their crime or its consequent punishment. However, the mental instability of a paranoid schizophrenic man convicted of murder, Imdad Ali, was dismissed as “a recoverable disease… and not a mental disorder” in a ruling by the Supreme Court on Thursday, which upheld his death sentence. Such blatant disregard for a serious mental illness recognised by psychological associations both here at home and abroad violates the country’s accreditation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The fact that the concerned judges even rejected certifications of Ali’s condition by government psychiatrists, previously noting that since a large proportion of prisoners suffered from some mental illness, the authorities “could not let everyone go.” This is a clear conformation of the terrifying disregard for mental health in Pakistan. The societal mindset perpetuating a rampant stigmatisation against mental illnesses has set forth a hostile environment that vilifies anyone with mental instability. It is easy for the Pakistani society to brand any patient as a ‘lunatic’ in lieu of accepting the seriousness of mental conditions. Amid such public apathy and a lack of understanding of mental behaviour, most patients and their family members fail to even recognise the symptoms. Even in the few fortunate cases that they do, families of patients are more interested in spiritual cures including exorcism of evil spirits and invoking divine guidance by reciting holy verses. Despite the increasing prevalence of those afflicted by mental illnesses — at least 10 to 16 percent of the population — a 2014 report by WHO noted an alarming psychiatrist-to-person ratio of one to half a million people. Thus, when there isn’t simply much medical help to be had, particularly in the rural areas, how else would society treat those in need of psychiatric help other than classifying them as either lunatic or ‘demonically possessed’? This continued stigmatisation also discourages many from accepting that they suffer from something even as common as depression or anxiety. The little progress that Pakistan has achieved in terms of legislations (2001 Mental Health Ordinance) as well as the infrastructure needed to manage mentally ill (20 psychiatric wards in 2005 versus three in 1947) does not hold much ground when compared to the international community. Last year, in an acknowledgement of her battle against depression on a television show, the Bollywood superstar, Deepika Padukone, succeeded in shattering the shroud of silence around mental illnesses in Indian society. Even in the wake of common yet affordable availability of extensive treatments for mental illnesses in the US, their lawmakers often find themselves under fire over neglect of mental illnesses. If Pakistan actually considered mental health a serious welfare issue of its residents, it would have long added to the meagre funds available for the sector — two percent of an even more insignificant 2.4 percent of the budget allocated for public health. Many more miles need to be walked in terms of establishing societal support for the illnesses and increasing the availability of medical assistance to make significant progress in this regard. Meanwhile, it is hoped that some miracle in the form of presidential intervention spares Imdad Ali’s life.*