Ageing A Major Social Problem; Care & Protection For Old must be ensured: Bombay HC Grants Relief To 65-Yr-Old Stepmother

A single judge bench of the Bombay High Court comprising Justice RG Avachat has recently granted relief to a 65-year-old stepmother while observing that ageing has become a major social challenge and there is a need to give more attention to the care and protection for older persons.

The high court while granting relief to the 65-year-old said,

“The Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Act of 2007 is – Traditional norms and values of the Indian society laid stress on providing care for the elderly. However, due to withering of the joint family system, a large number of elderly are not being looked after by their family.”

While observing that older persons are forced to spend their twilight years alone, the court said:

“Consequently, many older persons, particularly widowed women are now forced to spend their twilight years all alone and are exposed to emotional neglect and to lack of physical and financial support. This clearly reveals that ageing has become a major social challenge and there is a need to give more attention to the care and protection for the older persons. Though the parents can claim maintenance under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, the procedure is both time-consuming as well as expensive. Hence, there is a need to have simple, inexpensive and speedy provisions to claim maintenance for parents.”

The court was hearing an appeal filed against the order of the Sub-divisional Officer-cum-Presiding Officer of the Tribunal constituted under Section 7 of the Maintenance And Welfare of Parents And Senior Citizens Act, 2007.

The said appeal was filed by the children of the biological father who had died in 2014. The disputed property was purchased out of the funds of the biological mother of the petitioners. Both the petitioners claimed that being class 1 heirs they had the right to dispose of the property. The petitioners claimed that after their biological mother passed away, the stepmother had ill-treated them and therefore sheltered them at the house of their maternal grandmother. On the demise of the maternal grandmother, the petitioners came back to the disputed property.

The petitioners argued that the tribunal has only jurisdiction to grant maintenance in terms of the quantum of money and has no jurisdiction to pass any other order, specifically the one in question in this writ petition.

The 65-year-old stepmother argued that the petitioners would harass and ill-treat her after the demise of their father. Further, she claimed that it is her right to stay peacefully and comfortably in the disputed premises and the petitioners one or the other way, harassed and ill-treated her and thereby made her living miserable.

The court referred to the definition of maintenance under the Maintenance And Welfare of Parents And Senior Citizens Act, 2007 which states that: “maintenance” to include provision for food, clothing, residence and medical attendance and treatment.

Further, the court also referred to the definition of the parent which states: The term “parent” to mean father or mother whether biological, adoptive or step father or step mother, as the case may be, whether or not the father or the mother is a senior citizen.

Therefore, while noting that the 65-year-old stepmother was included in the definition of parent, the court did not grant relief to the petitioners and allowed the stepmother to reside at the disputed property. However, the court directed the stepmother not to create third-party rights in the disputed property

Case Title: Mayur Vaijanath Tawde & Anr vs State of Maharashtra & Ors.

Statue: Maintenance And Welfare of Parents And Senior Citizens Act, 2007.