As per officials sources, the UP government is drawing out a plan to amend the ‘UP Maintenance of parents and senior citizens rules 2014′ wherein the older parents’ children could be prosecuted for evicting them from their property. The children, in such cases, may also be divested of their rights to parents’ property. The Uttar Pradesh Law Commission has prepared an amended draft and sent it to the state government for review.
Maintenance rules for the parents prepared in 2014
The maintenance rules for the parents were prepared in 2014 but it lacked the requisite provisions, which would protect the property of senior citizens from their children. Earlier this week, the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court, had also taken cognizance of the case of an elderly couple whose daughters were trying to force their parents out of their house.
The court also sought the state government’s reply on the measures taken for the establishment of the tribunal and appellate tribunal under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 and the rules framed under it for the welfare and protection of senior citizens in Uttar Pradesh.
Previous rules lacked provisions to protect older parents or senior citizens
Court judgments have indicated that many senior citizens are evicted from their properties by their children and these situations have been studied thoroughly by the Law Commission. It was found that the previous rules did not provide blanket protection to older parents or senior citizens, which has been a pressing issue.
In its October 2017 order, the Allahabad High Court had granted 3 months’ time to the state government to issue a notification for the formation of tribunal and appellate tribunal, designate a maintenance officer, establish old age homes and to constitute a district committee of senior citizens. Along with this, Allahabad HC also instructed the officials to take appropriate measures to garner media publicity pertaining to this context and to sensitize the public, police officers and employees of the state about it.
With inputs from IANS
