Once a 'pensioner's paradise,' Bengaluru now 'abuse capital for elders'

Elders seem to be anything but safe in Bengaluru, if complaints of abuse received by Elderline (14567), the national helpline, are any indication.

Bengaluru Urban topped the list of calls received by Elderline between June 2021 and May 2022, accounting for 104 calls in the last one year, followed by Belagavi with 24, Mysuru with 20, Shivamogga with 17, Haveri with 13, and Vijayapura and Mandya 11 each.

The Elderline received 341 calls from elders complaining of abuse during the last one year.

An analysis of the verbal complaints raised in the last three years with the Elder's helpline (1090) in Bengaluru shows 80 complaints were raised during 2019-20 and it rose to 86 in 2020-21.

Between April 2021 and May 2022, the helpline received 99 calls.

Most calls were related to abuse of senior citizens over property issues.

"The property is registered in the name of the spouse after the elder's death. But children occupy the property and try to usurp it on the ground that they have invested on the house construction," says an official with the Elders' Helpline.

The most common property-related complaints pertain to the cancellation of gift deeds: children would have occupied the residential properties gifted to them and thrown out their elders, who want help in getting the properties back.

There have been instances where a senior citizen would have paid for the property (flat) but the loan component would be in the name of his or her son or daughter because banks do not lend after the age of 55. As a result, the property will later be claimed by the son or daughter and parents will be asked to move out, said the official.

"In one case, a son has died, but the daughter-in-law is claiming her in-laws' home as her matrimonial home. There are also instances where the sons move away from their parents' home despite a court order, but their divorced wives refuse to leave, claiming that the in-laws' home is their matrimonial home," said the official.

The Elderline (14567), which was launched in June 2021, received 341 calls in just a year and most were about the abuse of senior citizens.

"Abuse can be physical, mental and emotional. We see a majority of the cases from Bengaluru Urban and we saw a spike during the pandemic and post-it. Many have lost their jobs or changed cities and required money to start afresh. There have been days where we would get at least 200 calls a day," said an official with Elderline.

She said some parents register a verbal complaint, but refuse to file a written complaint, fearing that this would affect the future of their children.

The official said that the helpline has a panel of lawyers who help senior citizens, earning below Rs 3 lakh per annum, to reclaim their rights and fight for a property that rightly belongs to them.