NDTV Impact: Probe After Madhya Pradesh Folk Dancers Tested For HIV/AIDS

Following NDTV's report, the Chief Medical Health Officer (CMHO) of Ashoknagar was transferred to Bhopal while the district administration has constituted a three-member committee to probe the matter.

Women folk dancers were tested for HIV/AIDS by health department officials before they attended a fair at a temple for Goddess Sita in Madhya Pradesh's Ashoknagar district on Sunday.

Following NDTV's report, the Chief Medical Health Officer (CMHO) of Ashoknagar was transferred to Bhopal while the district administration constituted a three-member committee to probe the matter.

The folk dancers were tested for HIV/AIDS at a makeshift facility in the temple. However, the authorities were allegedly in violation of three key rights for HIV/AIDS testing - the right to informed consent, the right to confidentiality, and the right to discrimination.

The National Commission For Women has sought a report within five days, adding that the testing was in "violation of the dancers' right to live with dignity".