Indian bid to enforce children's obligation to aging parents

Amid changing family values, a proposed law would force children to support their elderly parents.

from the August 27, 2007 edition

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Any relative of a senior citizen who is in possession of property or who stands to inherit the property of the concerned senior citizen would be liable to provide maintenance.

The law also states that those who refuse to pay the fees can face up to one month in prison.

"Our message is that older people do not need charity or sympathy," says Anjali Raje, a sociologist from the Pune-based Community Aid and Sponsorship Program, an advocacy group that works primarily on behalf of children."They need respect, companionship, and dignity."

Legal questions remain

But experts warn that several legal holes must be filled in the bill before it is made into a law. In its current form, the bill does not address the needs of senior citizens who do not have children or property.

Another shortcoming, experts and advocates say, is that the law would only provide for senior citizens who are older than 60 years.

"Many women are widowed before their attaining the age of 60 years and their maintenance should be ensured in case of destitution," says Nandita Banerjee, a senior citizens' projects manager at the Dignity Foundation, a social services organization for elderly Indians that is based in Mumbai (Bombay). "And indigent, unemployed men [who are] below the age of 60 years and not eligible for old age pension have the right to be maintained by their adult earning children."

The proposal also does not make it entirely clear how the state will deal with kids who can't afford to pay for their parents. India's Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment in New Delhi says its officials are in consultation with various nongovernmental organizations to discuss the legal gaps.

But beyond the purely legal difficulties, many parents say they would be reluctant to use the law to sue their own children.

"No parent would like his child to be penalized for not showing regards to them," says Ananta Khudaskar, whose son walked out with his wife and daughter a year ago, leaving the frail man to survive alone on a small pension. He's bedridden, and there's no one to take care of him.

Mr. Khuduskar's son, Vinayak Khuduskar, says he sends his father Rs. 500 ($12) each month, a fact his father denies.

The younger Mr. Khuduskar, a clerk who earns $400 per month, says the bill is too one-sided in favor of the elderly. "I won't be able to afford paying up $250 on a regular basis if the law is enforced," he says.

But despite their disagreement, the senior Mr. Khuduskar says his differences with his son stem from more than money. "I want my son's love and affection, not his money."

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