New Delhi (Sputnik) — Parents in India will now have the right to take back wealth gifted to their children in the likelihood that their children treat them poorly in old age.
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The Mumbai High Court, while upholding a lower court's order canceling a gift deed given by an elderly resident of Mumbai by which he had granted half of his flat to his son, observed that children are duty bound to look after their elderly parents even if one of them is a stepparent.
"The gift deed was made at the request of the son and his wife. It is implied that the elderly father and his second wife would be looked after by them after the 50 percent share transfer in the flat. Obviously, the son and his wife, though ready and willing to look after the father, were unwilling to do so in respect of the second wife. In the above circumstances, we do not find any error in the order canceling the gift deed, therefore, we are not inclined to entertain this petition," a bench comprising Justices Ranjit More and Anuja Prabhudesai observed.
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The 2007 Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act has provisions to protect the interests of parents and elderly persons who have signed away their property or assets to a person.