The Delhi High Court has recently ruled that when marital discord between a husband and a wife disturbs the peaceful home life of elderly parents living in the house, the court can order either the daughter-in-law and/the son to leave, based on what the senior citizen parents prefer. On this ground, the Delhi High Court ordered a wife to move out of her mother-in-law’s home because the mother -in-law wanted her (wife) gone.
While giving this eviction order, the Delhi High Court noted that the wife has her own house in Bahadurgarh and works as a post graduate teacher, earning a decent salary. The court reasoned that losing her place in her mother-in-law’s house would not cause her serious hardship. ) The court felt that allowing her to stay there would continue to upset the senior citizen due to marriage problems.
It is important to note that the wife had filed a domestic violence case against her husband and mother-in-law on August 13, 2018. This case is currently being heard by the Court of Judicial Magistrate First Class (Mahila Court), South, Saket Court, New Delhi.
Also read: Supreme Court evicts 61-year-old son for neglecting 80-year-old parents in Mumbai
Why did she lose the case?
Pooja Rao Putrevu, Founder of Annex Legal, said to ET Wealth Online the wife lost the case essentially because of the Delhi High Court's harmonious reading of the legislations rather than one legislations straight up over riding the other.
Further, the Delhi High Court in this particular case treated eviction as a means of implementing the protection granted under Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007. Putrevu says that in this case, the right of a daughter-in-law to a shared household was not treated as an absolute right as the senior citizens in the house have a right to peaceful living.
Putrevu says that senior citizens must assert their right to live peacefully through the proper legal process. The court must then examine the facts of the case, including how the son and his wife treat the senior citizens, who owns the property, and any other relevant circumstances, before deciding whether eviction is necessary to ensure the seniors’ peace and well-being.
Delhi High Court discussion
Domestic violence case and Senior Citizen Act case are independent of each other
The Delhi High Court said that proceedings for eviction as contemplated in Rule 22(3)(1) of the 2009 Rules (Senior Citizen Act) are independent of the proceedings for maintenance for parents and senior citizens, which are filed before the Senior Citizen Tribunal constituted under section 7, under the provision of Section 4, read with Section 5 of the Senior Citizens Act, whereas, proceedings as contemplated under Rule 22(3)(1) of the 2009 Rules are instituted before the District Magistrate, appellate authority of which is the Divisional Commissioner.
Thus, the proceedings for maintenance under Section 4 read with Section 5 are independent of the proceedings of eviction which are to be instituted under Rule 22(3)(1) of the 2009 Rules.
The Delhi High Court said: “Thus, these proceedings being independent of each other, even if a prayer for maintenance under Section 4 read with Section 5 of the Senior Citizens Act by instituting appropriate proceedings has not been made, an application under Rule 22(3)(1) of the 2009 Rules can be maintained.”
If wife is not evicted, senior citizen mother-in-law’s well being would be affected
Delhi High Court said that the provisions of Section 4(3) of the Senior Citizens Act provide that the obligation of the children to maintain his/her parents extends to the needs of such parent, father or mother or both, so that such parent may lead a normal life.
However, in this case, because of marital discord between the wife and her husband, the mother-in-law was not able to live peacefully in the evening of her life.
Thus the Delhi High Court said that in their opinion, the order of eviction of the wife has rightly been passed by the Divisional Commissioner (Appellate Court).
The Delhi High Court observed that the relief granted to the mother-in-law by the Appellate Court, i.e. the Divisional Commissioner, can be viewed from another point of view as well. It is not in dispute that the wife is employed as a Post Graduate Teacher and she is earning a decent salary.
The Delhi High Court observed: “She is also having a separate house and therefore, her claim to reside in the shared household not being indefeasible has to be considered vis-à-vis right of the respondent no.2 (mother-in-law), who is a senior citizen to live a normal and peaceful life.”
This is why on September 30, 2026 the Delhi High Court upheld the wife’s eviction order.