HC asks DMs, SDMs to give reports on complaints received by senior citizens

The Delhi High Court Monday asked all the District Magistrates and SDMs here to file status reports on the complaints received by them under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 and the time within which action was taken.

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court Monday asked all the District Magistrates and SDMs here to file status reports on the complaints received by them under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 and the time within which action was taken. A bench of Acting Chief Justice Vipin Sanghi and Justice Sachin Datta initiated on its own a PIL based on a letter received by a woman advocate highlighting the state of affairs prevailing concerning the implementation of the Act.

The high court said it has been pointed out in the letter by advocate Neha Rai that the statutory authorities -- the District Magistrates (DM) and the Sub-Divisional Magistrates (SDM) are failing in expeditious implementation of the Act and that the appeals and cries of senior citizens have to be attended to on urgent basis to provide them relief or else their very existence is put in jeopardy. The court issued notice to the Delhi government through Chief Secretary, Delhi State Legal Service Authority (DSLSA), District Magistrates, and all the SDMs in Delhi.

We direct the respondents to file their responses to the issues raised by advocate Neha Rai in her letter of May 23, 2022. All the DMs and SDMs shall file their status reports with respect to the individual complaints received by them under the said Act; the time within which the same were actioned by the DMs; the time within which the reports were submitted by the SDMs upon physical inspection and verification of the contents of the complaints received, the bench said.

It further said that the status report should also indicate the number of complaints received on their website/helpline numbers with a complete log, from January 1, 2022, onwards. The court also said the authorities should also ensure that the helpline numbers are active and functioning and listed the matter for further hearing on July 12. (PTI)