Bachche khayal nahi rakhte — parents kya kar sakte hain?

Two routes: (1) the Maintenance Tribunal under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 — a summary, fast proceeding at the SDM level, no lawyer needed, maintenance up to ₹10,000/month under the Act; and (2) Section 144 BNSS before the Magistrate, which has no statutory cap. Sons and daughters are both liable, and childless senior citizens can claim from relatives who would inherit their property.

Kya beti se bhi maintenance maanga ja sakta hai?

Yes — the 2007 Act and Section 144 BNSS both make daughters equally liable with sons to maintain parents unable to maintain themselves.

Tribunal aur court mein kya farak hai?

The Tribunal (SDM level) is summary and quick — designed for senior citizens to appear without lawyers, with a ceiling of ₹10,000/month under the Act and conciliation built in. Section 144 BNSS before the Magistrate has no cap and full enforcement machinery (warrants, imprisonment for default), but takes the pace of a court. Many families use the Tribunal first for speed.

Family · Senior Citizens Act · S.144 BNSS

Maintenance for Parents — The Tribunal Route, the Court Route, and Protecting the House

Q: Ghar bachcho ke naam kar diya, ab woh dekhte nahi — kya wapas ho sakta hai?

Often yes. Section 23 of the 2007 Act allows the Tribunal to declare a transfer of property void where it was made on the condition (express or implied) that the transferee would provide basic amenities and care, and the transferee fails to do so. Courts have also directed abusive children to vacate the parents' house — the parents' right to live peacefully in their own home is protected.

Last updated: 11 July 2026 · By Advocate Manish Sharma, Faridabad · General legal information, not legal advice

In short: Parents whom children neglect have two legal routes. The Maintenance Tribunal under the Senior Citizens Act, 2007 (SDM level in Faridabad) is summary and fast — designed so parents can appear without a lawyer, with maintenance up to ₹10,000/month under the Act, conciliation built in, and a decision targeted within 90 days. Section 144 BNSS before the Magistrate has no cap and full enforcement teeth. Sons and daughters are equally liable. And the Act's sharpest tool: property transferred to children on the promise of care can be declared void (Section 23), and abusive children can be directed out of the parents' house.

Who can claim, from whom

Claimant	Liable person
Parent (father or mother, incl. adoptive/step in defined cases)	Sons and daughters, including through their means
Grandparent	Grandchildren, in defined circumstances
Childless senior citizen (60+)	The relative who possesses or would inherit their property

"Unable to maintain" doesn't mean absolute destitution — it means the parent's own earnings/property cannot sustain a normal life. A parent with a small pension can still claim the shortfall.

Route 1 — The Senior Citizens Tribunal (tez raasta)

Under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, every sub-division has a Maintenance Tribunal (the SDM in Haryana). The design is deliberately parent-friendly: a simple application (the parent, or an authorised person/NGO on their behalf), summary procedure, no advocate rights before the Tribunal by default (Section 17 — so children can't lawyer-up the parents into exhaustion), conciliation first, interim maintenance available, and a 90-day disposal target. Maintenance under the Act is capped (₹10,000/month), enforceable like a fine, and default can bring imprisonment up to a month. Appeals go to the Appellate Tribunal (Collector level). For Faridabad parents, the application goes to the SDM of their sub-division.

Route 2 — Section 144 BNSS (jab zyada chahiye)

Where the parent's needs exceed the Act's cap — medical costs, rent, a lifestyle the children's means can support — Section 144 BNSS before the Magistrate has no ceiling: the amount follows the children's income and the parent's needs, with interim maintenance, income-affidavit discipline, and the full enforcement machinery (recovery warrants; up to a month's imprisonment per defaulted month). The two routes are strategic alternatives — the Tribunal for speed and simplicity, the Magistrate for quantum — and the choice depends on the family's numbers.

Section 23 — the house wapas lene wala provision

The Act's most powerful and least-known tool: where a senior citizen has transferred property (gift deed, settlement) after the Act and the transfer was subject to the condition — express or even implied from circumstances — that the transferee would provide basic amenities and care, and the transferee fails, the Tribunal can declare the transfer void as if made by fraud/coercion/undue influence. The Supreme Court has read this protectively for parents (including in Urmila Dixit v. Sunil Sharan Dixit, 2025, restoring a mother's gift-deed cancellation). Separately, courts have directed abusive children to vacate the parents' home — ownership isn't even necessary; the parents' right to peaceful residence in their own house is protected. Documentation matters: the deed, the circumstances of the transfer, and the record of neglect.

What to bring (documents checklist)

Parent's ID/age proof and address proof (Faridabad residence fixes the Tribunal)
Proof of the parent's own income/assets (pension papers, bank statement) — to show insufficiency
Children's details and whatever is known of their income/employment
Medical records and monthly expense estimate — the quantum case
If property was transferred: the gift/settlement deed and the care-promise circumstances
Record of neglect: dated notes, messages, witnesses (neighbours, relatives)

The honest strategic note (for both generations)

Most of these matters are settled families, not courtroom wars — the Tribunal's conciliation stage regularly produces monthly-payment agreements without a contested order. For children facing an inflated claim, the answer is the same as everywhere in maintenance law: honest income disclosure and a documented account of what support was actually given. And for parents planning ahead: never transfer the house without a registered condition of maintenance and residence written into the deed — Section 23 works far better when the promise is on paper. The chamber handles both Tribunal and Magistrate proceedings at Faridabad — see the family practice page.

Frequently asked questions

Bachche khayal nahi rakhte — kya karein?

Do raaste: SDM Tribunal (tez, ₹10,000/month tak, lawyer zaroori nahi) ya S.144 BNSS Magistrate (koi cap nahi). Bete-betiyan dono liable.

Beti se bhi maintenance milti hai?

Haan — 2007 Act aur S.144 dono mein betiyan barabar liable hain.

Ghar naam kar diya, ab dekhte nahi — wapas hoga?

Section 23: care ki shart (likhi ya implied) toot jaaye to Tribunal transfer void kar sakta hai. Abusive bachcho ko ghar se nikalne ke orders bhi courts dete hain.

Kitna time lagta hai?

Tribunal ka target 90 din; conciliation mein aur jaldi. S.144 court ki pace pe chalta hai par interim maintenance pehle mil jaati hai.

Paise nahi diye order ke baad?

Fine ki tarah recovery + default pe ek mahine tak jail — dono routes mein.