Nagpur: A 74-year-old businessman’s attempt to revoke a property gift deed executed in favour of his daughter was dismissed by the Nagpur bench of Bombay High Court, which found no legal basis under the Senior Citizens Act to declare the transfer null and void.Justice RM Joshi, upholding earlier rulings of Maintenance Tribunal and Appellate Authority, ruled that the gift deed — executed in 2016 for a commercial shop in Sitabuldi — did not contain any express or implied condition that the daughter had to maintain her father and provide basic amenities. “In such circumstances, the tribunal was justified to reject the application,” the judge ruled recently.The petitioner claimed the shop was gifted out of affection at a time when his daughter was experiencing marital issues. Later, citing a breakdown in family ties and lack of support, he approached the Tribunal under Section 23 of Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, arguing that she breached an unwritten promise to care for him. His daughter challenged the verdict through counsel Atul Pande, also the High Court Bar Association (HCBA) president. However, the court pointed out a crucial contradiction. “When it was the petitioner’s own case that his daughter is destitute, the question of her taking care of his basic needs does not arise,” Justice Joshi stated. Also, the father continues to reside in his own hotel and he had stated before the Appellate Authority that he was not seeking maintenance from her.The shop in question was part of a family partition, where one shop each was allocated to the petitioner’s two sons and the third to the daughter. “There is no stipulation in the gift deed that it was executed on condition of maintenance,” the court observed, dismissing the petitioner’s argument that obligations of care could be implied under the law.The court also rejected the petitioner’s claim that a domestic violence case filed by the daughter against her brother and mother should justify revoking the gift. “Merely because such a proceeding is initiated, won’t become a ground for revocation,” Justice Joshi held.Warning against misuse of the Senior Citizens Act, the judge noted that the provision is sometimes invoked as a shortcut to avoid pursuing disputes through civil courts. “Apparently, this is one such attempt, wherein there is reason to believe that since the woman has filed proceedings against the father under provisions of Domestic Violence Act, the gift deed executed in her favour is sought to be declared null and void,” the court said before dismissing the case.
