Haryana rights panel asks Gurugram district administration to check on ‘neglected' elderly couple
Chandigarh: The Haryana Human Rights Commission (HHRC) has taken note of a 96-year-old man and his 86-year-old wife being allegedly abandoned and neglected by their son, Rajesh Mitra, in DLF City, Phase IV, Gurugram.
Acting on a complaint submitted by residents and representatives of Ridgewood Estate Condominium Association, the commission has issued directions to the Gurugram district administration and health authorities to conduct a medical, psychological, and social assessment of the elderly couple.
The complaint alleges that the senior citizens were left in a state of grave neglect, relying solely on two female attendants, without proper medical supervision.
The elderly man is often heard crying out in pain, causing severe emotional trauma not just to his wife but also to other senior residents in the vicinity.
Despite repeated appeals to the son and local authorities, no effective action was taken, prompting the intervention of the commission.
HHRC chairperson Justice Lalit Batra (retd) expressed concern over the prolonged mental and physical suffering endured by the couple, calling it a blatant violation of Article 21 of the Constitution, which guarantees the fundamental right to live with dignity.
He emphasized that such situations are not "private family matters", but public human rights concerns, especially when society and the state fail in their shared responsibility to protect vulnerable citizens.
Justice Batra highlighted provisions under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, particularly Section 20, which obligates the state to provide adequate healthcare services to senior citizens, including reserved hospital beds, separate queues, and subsidised treatment.
If intentional abandonment is established, the commission noted, criminal liability under Section 24 of the 2007 law may be invoked against the responsible party.
The commission also directed the deputy commissioner, Gurugram, to constitute a multi-disciplinary medical and welfare committee, comprising the commissioner of police, local sub-divisional magistrate, civil surgeon, and the district social welfare officer (also designated as maintenance officer under Section 20 of the 2007 law). This team is instructed to visit the residence and conduct a comprehensive assessment of the couple's physical, emotional, and social condition, said the commission, which has sought a status report and long-term action plan for the couple's treatment, care, and rehabilitation before the next hearing on July 3.
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