In a significant remark, the Bombay High Court has stated that a woman cannot be evicted or made homeless from her matrimonial home merely to maintain the mental peace of her elderly in-laws. The observation came from a bench headed by Justice Sandeep Marne during the hearing of a petition filed by a woman challenging an order by the Maintenance Tribunal, constituted under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act.
The petitioner accused her husband of colluding with his parents to oust her from the home using the Maintenance Tribunal. The bench clarified that while senior citizens are entitled to live in peace, they cannot use their rights in a way that would nullify a woman’s rights under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act.
The court shed light on the matter stating, “There is no doubt that senior citizens are entitled to live peacefully in their home, without the disturbances caused by marital discord between their son and daughter-in-law. However, the machinery under the Senior Citizens Act cannot be used with the objective of defeating the rights of a woman under Section 17 of the Domestic Violence Act.”
The Case in Detail
The matter involved the petitioner and her husband, who married in 1997 and resided in a flat registered in the name of the husband’s mother. Amidst marital discord, the Maintenance Tribunal in 2023 ordered the couple to vacate the flat. However, the petitioner’s husband did not vacate and did not challenge the Tribunal’s order, continuing to live with his parents. This led the court to believe that the eviction proceedings initiated by the woman’s in-laws were merely a strategy to remove her from the home.
The court remarked, “She has no other place to live. Therefore, she cannot be made homeless to ensure the mental peace of senior citizens.” The High Court nullified the eviction order of the Tribunal and also noted that the petitioner’s application under the Domestic Violence Act for the right to reside in the shared household was still pending before a magistrate. Consequently, the High Court directed the magistrate to expedite the disposal of the woman’s application.
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