Introduction-
In our country, there was a time when parents were treated as gods and their children always took care of them but in modern society, this trend changed totally. It is assumed that during the old age of parents, their children must take care of them. This has not always been the case. To resolve the social and economic problems resulting from the increasing apathy of their heirs towards the elderly, The maintenance and welfare of parents and senior citizens act[1] (MWPSC) was enacted in 2007. They don’t make things happen like this many of us don’t spend time with our family from now only think when we start working and our parents will be in the category of senior citizens and this will be the time in which they need our support, help, love, care, and many more things but we will not provide them with any one of these. As when something bad happens in society then the law came to change that and so this happens and the law that will help senior people was the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act[2] This law was made in 2007 and was initiated by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. This scenario was also shown in the Baghban movie in which parents work hard for their children and children just neglect them like they just don’t want them. They always use them for money only and this is a reality in many places nowadays.
Through a survey in 2013, we get to know that the things that are faced by senior citizens are Disrespect (this is very common in many areas as a child thinks they are above their parents), Verbal Abuse(this happens to them when there is a fight between child and their parent then they just abuse them too much), beating( this happen when the things are on don’t talk and take care of them) and all these things done by their children and their parents feel the pain that we can call the highest pain as parents always give their best to help their child they can even sell their property for them and when they came to know that their child doesn’t even want to help them in their most needed stage then they feel that they have done something wrong in their parenting work for giving their child the moral values he needed he wasn’t given.
So, we can say that children were forgetting their duties towards their parents and that’s why there was a need for a law in which senior citizens who are not capable of doing work need not beget abused, beaten, etc. and provide some necessities so that they can live peacefully in their life.
About Bill-
So, this bill gives the legal right to senior citizens to ask for maintenance of Rs 10,000 per month and this is the maximum amount. It also allows the state government to constitute Maintenance Tribunals to decide monthly maintenance and amount should not exceed Rs10,000 The bill removes this upper limit on the maintenance fee and allows Tribunals to set the fee by considering two factors that are
1- the standard of living and earnings of the senior citizen.
2- the earning of the children.
Features of this bill-
- Definition of “children” and “parents’ has been expanded- All definitions we have discussed earlier just need to check them again. These definitions give us a brief introduction about all these points and by getting all these points to give us the basic knowledge of all these points.
- Mode of submission of application for maintenance has been enlarged- There are different modes of submission that are discussed in this act. Modes like the mode of communication were enlarged in this bill so that this would be easier for them to file a complaint.
- The ceiling of Rs 10,000/- as maintenance amount has been removed- There was the highest maintenance of RS10,000/- which was removed in an amendment in 2019[3] so that they get an easier life and get to things very well easily. Because maintenance sometimes was not enough for them, this provision was removed.
- Preference to dispose of applications of senior citizens, above eighty years of age, early has been included- In this amendment the preference was given to main senior citizens that are to be known above the ’80s in their life. This preference makes them feel safe as they are the ones who are more vulnerable to all these kinds of things and these things will make them feel safe from all of this.
- Registration of Senior Citizens Care Homes/Homecare Service Agencies etc. have been included- These are also needed to be maintained by government home cares and all these pieces of stuff need to be maintained by many ones including the government. With this helps at least a basic shelter need can be fulfilled and they also get someplace where they can reside.
- Minimum standards for senior citizen care homes have been included in the Bill- Minimum standards like home, food, health, etc need to be provided and these things need to be included in this bill. Basic needs are the lowest things anyone can get, and all citizens of a country can get basic needs to live in the world.
- Appointment of Nodal Police Officers for Senior Citizens in every Police Station and District level Special Police Unit for Senior Citizens has been included- This was a need because there is an abuse of senior citizens sometimes. So, to protect them from all this, we need this. By having this they can file their complaint easily and can also get help from these officers and officers respond to them immediately and thus they will get much more help.
- Maintenance of Helpline for senior citizens has been included- Like women there is also a helpline for senior citizens that was introduced in this amendment that helps senior citizens and this threatens people to misbehave with other senior citizens because they will feel fear because of this helpline.
Drawbacks of this bill-
- Normal Life Term- A term normal life is given in this act which refers to a normal way of life but there is no definition provided by anyone regarding this and hence this is too tough to determine the normal life of any person.
- If They are Earning No Compensation- If the parents are earning any amount of money, then there will be a tough phase for them coming in this name as they need to prove that this much earning is not sufficient for them.
- Highest Limit of Rs-10,000 – Even though it is removed now but in earlier times the amount was not helpful for anyone as anytime the expenses can be so more even, they can’t imagine.
- Preference to dispose of applications of senior citizens, above eighty years of age, early has been included- In this amendment the preference was given to main senior citizens that are to be known above the ’80s in their life.
- Claim Only for 3 Months- If senior citizens are not given money that was given in their judgement, they can’t even claim that after 3 months. There is no logic behind this provision.
- No Support from the Government side- Almost every policy in India is backed by the government but in this government-backed themselves.
- Less Old-Age Homes- In this Act the government is asked for making at least one old-age home in each district but this thing is not taken seriously, and we can say the government on their side don’t want to improve these things.
Case Law– Even though the act was enacted in 2007 first case was enacted in 2011 by Siluvai and his wife Arulammal of Tuticorin against their son and daughter-in-law for neglect, besides taking away their two homes and gold jewellery.
Dr Ashwani Kumar V. Union of India[4]– Under the Indira Gandhi Old Age Pension Scheme, the centre only provides Rs.200 per Month. States have not matched this amount. The average pension ranges 200-2000 depending upon the state they live in. This PIL was filed by DR. Ashwani Kumar in 2016 for the enforcement of the rights of elderly persons under Article 21 of the constitution. He prayed for the effective implementation of the MWPSC 2007 and the pension schemes for the elderly. In Dr Ashwani Kumar, it was submitted that the amounts in these schemes were last revised in 2007. The amount provided for in the scheme could not be used by the beneficiaries to meet their basic needs.
Radhamani v. the State of Kerala[5]– In this case, the donor named Gopalkrishnan Nair himself had deposed before the Tribunal that he was deprived of basic amenities and physical needs. It is to be noted that Section-23 provides for declaration of the document in certain circumstances, not merely concerning the failure of providing basic amenities and basic physical needs, which may include failure to provide maintenance as well. The object of Section is that the transferee is bound to provide all provisions of welfare measures. There is no reason to interfere with the factual findings of the Tribunal. Party was executed by Late Gopalakrishnan Nair. Therefore, leaving open this writ petition was dismissed at no cost.
After knowing about all these acts let’s come to know about maintenance, procedure and power and Government –
Maintenance of Parents and Senior Citizens –
A senior citizen including a foster parent will be entitled to apply under section 5 in the event of-
* A parent or grandparent against one or more of his or her minor children
* A senior childless citizen, against his or her relative referred to in subsection (g) of section 2. The obligation of the children or relative, as it may be, to support the senior citizen goes beyond the need of that parent either father or mother or both, as it may be, so that the parent can live a normal life. The responsibility of the children or relatives, as it may be, is to keep the senior citizen beyond the requirements of such a citizen so that the senior citizen can live a normal life. Any person who is a relative of a senior citizen and who has adequate means will keep that adult if he or she owns the property of that senior citizen or inherits that senior citizen.
Power and Procedure-
There is a procedure for all the law as well as this law and this under section 5 can be taken by any children or relative in any district-
* Where he lives or resides
* Where children or relatives live
Upon receipt of an application under section 5, the court will issue a procedure to determine the presence of the children or relatives of the applicant. To strengthen the presence of children or relatives, the Tribunal shall have jurisdiction over the Magistrate’s Court of the first instance as provided for under the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973. All evidence of the trial shall be taken before the children or the opposing relative. proposed to make an order for the payment of maintenance and will be recorded in the manner prescribed by the summons relating to claims for payment of maintenance to deliberately avoid being served, or deliberately negligently going to court., the court may continue to hear and determine another case. where the child or relative lives outside India, summonses will be issued by the Court in exercising that power, as the Central Government may by notice in the Official Gazette, specify. The Tribunal before hearing a petition under section 5 may refer the same to the conciliation tribunal and the conciliation tribunal must submit the findings within one month and once a peace agreement has been reached, the Tribunal will issue an order accordingly.
Inadequate Social Security and Dependence-
Dependence on the elderly is a normal part of life and they always do their best to provide basic services such as food, health, etc. This is provided by their family members and the government, and these things help them to live their normal lives. Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme, Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana (PNVVY) are among the most important financial programs in which the state provides social protection. They showed 77% of the elderly and 50% of the elderly.
So now let’s simplify each one-
Act of 2007-
This was a new phenomenon in the field and was made with the knowledge of many experts so that we could work however there were some problems in this practice. One of the key changes brought about by this law is to provide for a separate court to resolve grievances. Before the Act, the victim may apply for maintenance under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973[6]. This would mean that the older person must go to court for relief and incur serious costs to file a lawsuit. The process is simplified under the MWPSC Act of 2007. Foundation of the MWPSC Act of 2007 on the dependence on adults. While debating the Bill in parliament, the Minister of Social Justice, Meira Kumar, also acknowledged that the social dacoity system in India is inadequate. Examination of the debate reveals that the main reason for this law was Indian Culture, tradition, and morality. This law aims to include the moral obligation of children to their parents. In doing so, the state has given up its mandate to provide social security. A 2004 NSS study on the status of older persons found that among the economically dependent older men, rural or urban, about 6-7% provided financial support for their spouses, about 85% of their children., 2% by their grandchildren and 6-7% by others including unrelated. This means that most older people rely on their family members for financial support. Data and cultural values of respect for children make this act important. However, the state has used this act to disrupt its work and its function for adults. This work can be found in Article 41[7], DPSP (Directive principle of state policy) which states that “the state, within the limits of its economic power and development, has made effective arrangements to obtain social assistance in the past. years”. There are no major investment plans that can be used as an alternative to safe investment. Lack of alternatives puts these groups at risk. Examination of the current framework reveals that the process of receiving maintenance from relatives is fraught with obstacles. According to a study by HelpAge, it is reported that the applicants experienced a great deal of difficulty in satisfactorily obtaining the order. The biggest problem was the use. After the applicants received an order in court, it was not sufficiently covered. They received their maintenance for a while but eventually stopped. Applicants indicated that it was difficult to go back to court to file a complaint of non-compliance. For those who have asked for it to be difficult to go back to court, they continue to be disappointed.
The 2019 Amendment –
After the first act was considered a total failure government amended this act in 2019 and in this amendment only some major issues can be classified like definitions for the senior citizen was broadened and the highest limit of Rs-10,000 was also removed but the main problem of provisions that were not needed were added in this act were not removed even though the main focus should be in this area only, but no effect was there for these provisions. The other significant change proposed by the amendment bill 2019, is to remove the upper limit of Rs. 10,000 as maintenance amount that may be awarded by the tribunal under this Act. This limit is unreasonable and should be assessed in terms of the needs of the elderly and the current cost of living that may depend on a variety of factors and vary across districts. Another notable criticism of the current Act is that it has a very limited view of maintenance under section 2 (b). It is proposed that the phrase ‘to lead a life of dignity sets an aspirational standard. It does not depend entirely on family dynamics like normal life. A life of dignity must encompass all aspects of the well-being of a person. Considering that currently, the dependence on the family for maintenance is very high, these changes are welcome and will create a better adult support system. So now we can say that we have changed almost all errors that were faced by elderly people in that time and let’s see what difficulty faced by them now and then what happened.
Conclusion-
From all the given material we can conclude that in ancient times parents (father and mother) were treated like gods but these things change in modern times as children think about everything as an economic nature so they start to treat their parents badly even they beat sometimes them when they think that it is needed and this crime was just increasing day by day so for removing these things from society a new act was passed in parliament in 2007 that is THE MAINTENANCE AND WELFARE OF PARENTS AND SENIOR CITIZENS ACT (2007) In this Act 10,000 was the highest limit set-up by Act and there were also some problems like hard to file a petition and all so for removing these types of things Government introduced an amended bill in 2019 in which highest limit of Rs.10,000 was removed also for filing petition process was made easy so that every old man can file a petition. In this Act some definitions were expanded in the latest amendment like children, relatives, etc. same type of Act was also passed in Taiwan in 1980 and it was named the Senior Citizens Welfare Act 1980 it provides subsidies to the families who need to provide long term care of the elderly. It aims to enhance the financial independence of the elderly. Such an incentive rather than a sanction-based system can also be considered in India. Finally, I will say that there is a need to give moral values also that parents give their child always best, but the child sometimes does not give any of them back when needed the most so there is a need to take care of elderly people of society with much love.
Authored by- Aditya Raj Singh Rathore
2nd Year BBA LLB(H)
Amity University, Noida
[1] THE MAINTENANCE AND WELFARE OF PARENTS AND SENIOR CITIZENS (AMENDMENT) BILL, 2019 No. 374 of 2019.
[2] THE MAINTENANCE AND WELFARE OF PARENTS AND SENIOR CITIZENS (AMENDMENT) BILL, 2007 No. 56 of 2007
[3] FP Staff, India’s new bill on welfare of parents, senior citizens will motivate youths to care for elderly, here’s why, First Post, 22 July 2021
[4] Dr Ashwani Kumar V. Union of India (2018) MISCELLANEOUS APPLICATION NO. 2560 OF 2018
[5] Radhamani v. the State of Kerala (2015) SCC Online Ker 33530
[6] THE CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE, 1973 ACT NO. 2 OF 1974
[7] INDIA CONST. art 41
Excellent article. This article is extremely helpful.