Despite High Court ruling, sons evaded paying Rs. 5,000 a month; Assistant Commissioner K.R. Rakshith intervenes

Mysore/Mysuru: The Mysuru Assistant Commissioner’s (AC) Court has become a beacon of hope for senior citizens who are not being cared for by their children. The Court effectively implemented the Karnataka High Court’s (HC) order, which directed two sons to pay their aged mother Rs. 5,000 as monthly maintenance.

Following the HC’s directive, Assistant Commissioner (AC) K.R. Rakshith summoned the family to his Court and instructed the sons to provide the Court-mandated monthly maintenance of Rs. 5,000 to                    their mother.

On July 12, 2023, the HC dismissed a petition filed by the siblings, Gopal and Mahesh, from Mysuru, challenging the maintenance order to pay Rs. 10,000 per month to their aged mother.

The HC upheld the Deputy Commissioner’s (DC) order and emphasised the significance of honouring the legal, religious, and cultural obligations of sons to care for their ageing parents. 

The dispute revolved around Venkatamma, the wife of the late Yellaiah, residing in Kurimandi Circle, Kesare, N.R. Mohalla, and her sons, Gopal and Mahesh.

The disagreement began in 2019 when the AC of Mysuru, H.N. Shivegowda, ordered Gopal and Mahesh to pay Rs. 5,000 each as monthly maintenance to their mother, Venkatamma. 

Dissatisfied with this decision, the brothers appealed to the DC at the time, Abhiram G. Sankar, who subsequently increased the maintenance amount to Rs. 10,000 each. Unhappy with this outcome, Gopal and Mahesh further contested the order in the High Court.

Justice Krishna S. Dixit of the High Court dismissed the petition, upholding the DC’s decision, and refuting all arguments raised by the brothers, asking them to pay Rs. 5,000 a month. The Court also imposed a cost of Rs. 5,000 on the brothers for filing the petition.

In its ruling, the HC stressed that a son’s obligation to care for dependent parents is as vital as supporting a dependent spouse. The Court rejected the brothers’ claim of insufficient means to provide financial support, stating that their argument was insufficient grounds for neglecting the responsibility of caring for their ageing and ailing mother.

The Court underscored the legal, religious and customary duty of sons to care for their parents, especially their aged mother. Justice Krishna Dixit remarked, “To neglect parents, particularly in their old age when they become weak and dependent, causing them anguish, is a heinous act for which there is no atonement available.”

Despite the HC’s order, the sons adamantly refused to support their mother, prompting her to approach the Assistant Commissioner’s Court once more.

Assistant Commissioner Rakshith issued an arrest warrant on Aug. 8 for Gopal and Mahesh, instructing them to appear before the AC’s Court. As the brothers evaded attending the AC Court, the Narasimharaja Police Inspector was directed on Aug. 19 to produce them before the AC Court for not complying with the High Court order.

Gopal and Mahesh were presented before the AC Court on Sept. 1 after a second arrest warrant was issued on Aug. 23.

In the presence of Venkatamma, Gopal and Mahesh, Rakshith ordered them to pay Rs. 5,000 a month as per the High Court’s directive.