Court says Section 23 of the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act applies only to valid transfers made with a maintenance condition; forged conveyances must be challenged before civil courts.
The Allahabad High Court has held that authorities under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 cannot be used as a forum to decide whether a registered gift deed is forged. Dismissing a writ petition filed by 68-year-old Balveer Singh, the Court said that a senior citizen alleging forgery, fake signatures, or fabrication of a conveyance must approach the competent civil court for cancellation of the document.
The petition arose from an order of the District Magistrate, Lalitpur, rejecting Singh’s application under Section 23 of the Act. Singh claimed that his daughter and son-in-law had fabricated a registered gift deed dated 18 November 2023 in respect of his house and had forcibly dispossessed him. He sought restoration of possession and eviction of the respondents from the property.
Justice J.J. Munir, speaking for the Bench, explained that Section 23(1) of the Act is attracted only when a senior citizen has actually transferred property by gift or otherwise subject to a condition that the transferee will provide basic amenities and basic physical needs, and the transferee later fails to honour that condition. In such a case, the law creates a statutory fiction under which the transfer may be declared void by the Tribunal.
However, the Court made it clear that this provision does not extend to cases where the very execution of the deed is disputed on the ground of forgery. “The Tribunal is not a Court of general civil jurisdiction,” the Bench observed, adding that it cannot adjudicate title disputes or decide whether a registered conveyance is void because it was allegedly fabricated.
The Court rejected the petitioner’s reliance on the Supreme Court’s ruling in S. Vanitha v. Deputy Commissioner, Bengaluru Urban District, noting that while tribunals under the Act do have incidental power to order eviction in appropriate cases to secure maintenance or protection of senior citizens, that power is not plenary. It can be exercised only as an ancillary measure to ensure maintenance, protection of life and limb, or basic amenities—not to resolve civil disputes over ownership or the genuineness of a document.
The Bench also criticised the procedure adopted by the District Magistrate, who had reportedly constituted committees to inquire into the allegation of forgery. The Court said such an administrative method has no place in proceedings under the Act, which require a judicial or quasi-judicial process. Evidence must be taken on oath, in the presence of the opposite party, and the Tribunal has powers akin to a civil court for summoning witnesses and production of documents.
Despite finding fault with the procedure, the Court refused to interfere with the impugned order because the petitioner’s case itself fell outside the scope of Section 23. The writ petition was therefore dismissed, with liberty reserved to the petitioner to file an appropriate civil suit challenging the gift deed.
Bottom Line :
Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 - Tribunal under Section 23 cannot adjudicate a senior citizen's challenge to a registered gift deed on the ground of forgery, Section 23 applies only where a valid transfer by a senior citizen is made subject to the condition of providing basic amenities and physical needs, and the transferee fails to honour that condition - Power of eviction under the Act is only incidental to securing maintenance, protection, life and limb of senior citizens, and is not a substitute for plenary civil jurisdiction - Challenge to a forged conveyance must be brought before the competent Civil Court.
Statutory provision(s): Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 Sections 6, 7, 8, 23; Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 Sections 318(4), 61(2), 305, 352, 351(3)
Balveer Singh v. State of Uttar Pradesh, (Allahabad)(DB) : Law Finder Doc id # 2982547
