Senior Citizens Act Cannot Be Used as Tool for Summary Eviction

Source: Bombay High Court 

Why in News? 

The division bench of Justices Riyaz Chagla and Farhan Dubash in the case of Jitendra Gorakh Megh v. Additional Collector & Appellate Tribunal (2025) set aside eviction orders passed by a Tribunal and Appellate Tribunal, holding that the Senior Citizens Act cannot be misused for summary eviction without following proper legal procedures. 

What was the Background of Jitendra Gorakh Megh v. Additional Collector & Appellate Tribunal (2025) Case? 

• A 53-year-old man was evicted from his bungalow situated in the plush Andheri area of Mumbai through orders passed by a Tribunal and an Appellate Tribunal under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007. 
• The bungalow was owned by the petitioner's parents, who lived separately in a four-bedroom flat (1600 sq. ft.) in a nearby society. 
• The parents had permitted their son to live in the bungalow without paying any monies to them. 
• The parents never lived or resided with the petitioner in the bungalow in question. 
• In the application filed by the father under Section 5 of the Act of 2007, the parents did not raise any complaint regarding non-maintenance and neither did they seek any financial support from their children. 
• The only justification provided in the initial application was that the senior citizen was suffering from diabetes, arthritis, leg pain, and had difficulty in walking, and therefore needed to stay on the ground floor of the subject premises. 
• The senior citizen was financially well-to-do and owned several other immovable properties, both residential and commercial. 
• If evicted from the subject premises, the petitioner would not have any other roof over his head. 

What were the Court's Observations? 

• The bench held that the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 is a beneficial act meant for safeguarding the rights of vulnerable senior citizens and cannot be misused as a tool for seeking eviction without following the law. 
• The Court noted that the Act enables a senior citizen to file an application under Section 5 only if they are unable to maintain themselves from their own earnings or property. 
• The Court observed that Section 5 prescribes that the obligation of children to maintain senior citizens extends to the needs of such senior citizens so that they may lead a normal life. 
• The bench found that the senior citizen made no claim for maintenance in the application, making it non-maintainable under Section 5(2) of the Act. 
• The Court noted that neither the Tribunal nor the Appellate Tribunal considered or applied their mind to the averments made in the application. 
• The bench found the justification for requiring the subject premises to be a vague assertion completely bereft of any details or particulars. 
• The bench observed that since the senior citizen had never resided in the subject premises, there was no sentimental attachment to occupying it. 
• Accordingly, the Court quashed and set aside both the Tribunal's eviction order and the Appellate Tribunal's order.

What is the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007? 

About: 

• The Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 was enacted to provide more effective provisions for the maintenance and welfare of parents and senior citizens in India. The Act defines a "senior citizen" as any person who is a citizen of India and has attained the age of 60 years or above. 

Key Provisions: 

• Maintenance Obligation (Sections 4-18): Children have a legal obligation to maintain their parents, and relatives have an obligation to maintain childless senior citizens. 
• Establishment of Tribunals (Section 7): State governments must establish Maintenance Tribunals to adjudicate maintenance claims. 
• Old Age Homes (Section 19): State governments are required to establish old age homes in each district. 
• Medical Support (Section 20): Provisions for medical care for senior citizens. 
• Protection of Life and Property (Sections 21-23): Measures to protect senior citizens' lives and property.