Shivani Gadhavi
Published On: January 21, 2022 at 16:56 IST
On January 21, 2022, the Calcutta High Court observed that if a daughter-in-law has obtained compassionate appointment in regards with providing maintenance and medical assistance to mother-in-law, then she is bound and obliged to do the same due to undertaking given.
The case of Durgabala Madal v. State of West Bengal and Ors is pertaining to the matter of an 80-year-old widow whose responsibility was taken by her daughter-in-law after the death of her son in 2014.
The daughter-in-law, who happens to be one of the Respondents in the case, had applied for compassionate appointment of her mother-in-law, Durgabala Mandal, and had given an undertaking on July 26, 2016, that she will take responsibility of maintaining and providing medical assistance to her mother-in-law.
A Calcutta High Court Bench of Justices Prakash Shrivastava and Rajarshi Bhardwaj observed that “Once the respondent no. 9 (referring to daughter-in-law) had obtained the compassionate appointment by giving an undertaking as above to maintain and extend medical assistance to the appellant, then she is bound by that.”
After the compassionate appointment of her mother-in-law, the Respondent (daughter-in-law) did not comply with the undertaking in which she was to provide medical assistance and Maintenance to the Petitioner, her mother-in-law.
In this regard, the Appellate had earlier approached the High Court but her plea was dismissed by a Single-Judge Bench of the Calcutta High Court. Later on, the current Division Bench hearing the matter, took the case after she again filed an appeal in the High Court.
The Bench ruled, “In these circumstances, we dispose of the present appeal granting liberty to the appellant to file an appropriate detailed representation before the respondent no. 6 who will duly consider the grievance of the appellant and pass an appropriate order after giving an opportunity to the appellant and the respondent no. 9 in accordance with law as expeditiously as possible.”
Also read: Landmark Cases of Maintenance