In a significant ruling, the Allahabad High Court has clarified that maintenance tribunals constituted under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, have no jurisdiction to adjudicate disputes related to property ownership, especially in cases involving third-party claims. Such disputes must be resolved by civil courts, the court held.
A division bench comprising Justices Arindam Sinha and Y.K. Srivastava made the observation while dismissing a writ petition filed by a man named Ishak. The petitioner had sought protection under Rule 21 of the Uttar Pradesh Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Rules, 2014, claiming he was being threatened by private individuals for trying to construct a gate on his private property.
The court noted that the Act was primarily aimed at safeguarding senior citizens from neglect, particularly by their children or relatives who are likely to inherit their property. “There is no conferment of jurisdiction to adjudicate questions relating to property and ownership rights particularly where there is a dispute with third parties. The disputes in this regard are to be adjudicated before the civil courts of competent jurisdiction,” the bench stated.
Referring to the legislative intent of the 2007 Act, the court said it was enacted to address the growing neglect of elderly persons in the wake of disintegrating joint family structures in India. It pointed out that Section 4 of the Act entitles a senior citizen who cannot maintain himself to seek maintenance, while Section 5 empowers him to approach the Maintenance Tribunal under Section 7.
However, the bench ruled that Ishak’s grievance—obstruction by a neighbor in constructing a gate—did not fall under the scope of the Act. “No legal right under the Act was infringed,” the court concluded, dismissing the petition in its order dated July 16.
