The Delhi High Court has ruled that senior citizens can revoke property gift deeds if the donees fail to maintain them, holding that “love and affection” is an implied condition in such transfers.
A Bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela observed that not providing maintenance to senior citizens after execution of a gift deed would amount to fraud or coercion, thereby attracting Section 23(1) of the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007.
“Human conduct in the context of the Senior Citizens Act is to be understood considering the relationship between the senior citizen and the beneficiaries of the gift deed and if parents decide to settle the property in favour of a son or daughter, then they do so only with love and affection and with a fond hope that they shall be taken care of in their old age and therefore, love and affection being an implied condition of execution of the gift deed, subsequent non-maintenance of the senior citizen would attract Section 23(1) of the Senior Citizens Act and the Tribunal in such circumstances is empowered to declare the document as void,” the Court held.
The judgment came while upholding the cancellation of a Janakpuri property gift deed executed by 88-year-old Daljit Kaur in favour of her daughter-in-law, Varinder Kaur. Daljit Kaur had moved the Maintenance Tribunal under Section 23 of the Act alleging neglect, denial of medical care, and threats after transferring the property in 2015.
While the Tribunal in 2019 declined to cancel the deed but directed police to monitor her safety, the District Magistrate overturned that order in July 2023, declaring the gift deed void.
Challenging this, Varinder Kaur argued that Section 23 only applies when a gift deed expressly contains a condition obligating the transferee to maintain the senior citizen. Since no such clause was present in the 2015 deed, she contended, the District Magistrate had no authority to cancel it.
The High Court rejected this narrow reading of the law, stressing that its objective is to protect senior citizens from destitution. “Having perused the order passed by learned Single Judge which is based on appropriate consideration of all the relevant aspects of the matter including the material available on record, we find ourselves in complete agreement with the judgment and order under appeal herein,” the Bench stated.
The Court thus upheld the cancellation of the deed and dismissed the appeal filed by the daughter-in-law.
Advocate Pankaj Batra appeared for the appellant daughter-in-law, while Advocate Siddharth Banthia represented the senior citizen. Advocate Vaishali Gupta represented the Delhi government.
Case: Smt Varinder Kaur vs Smt Daljit Kaur & Ors – Available on LAWFYI.IO
