Published: 12:01 AM, 20 April 2026 Last Update: 12:00 PM, 20 April 2026
We Must Ensure the Betterment of Elderly Parents
Dr. Md. Anwar Hossain
Parents are the heavenly shadows on earth, with whose genuine affection we grow up. But in the current consumerist society, many children are forgetting those who gave birth to them in the crowd of their own prosperity and luxury. This ingratitude is not just a family problem, but a social disease. Neglecting parents means denying one's roots. In the words of the poet, "Where parents do not find a place, there is no blessing from God."
A son of a wealthy family lives a royal life with his wife in his huge mansion, but he has given his old mother a place in the dark storeroom of the house. Day after day, food does not reach there properly, yet that son is known as a philanthropist outside.
An engineer working abroad has sold all his parents' assets and migrated to a developed country. Now his parents spend the night in the shelter of others in the village or on the veranda. Even though the son regularly posts pictures of his luxurious life on social media, he does not send a single rupee for the treatment of his elderly parents.
A high-ranking government official, in order to protect his prestige, has sent his ailing father to an old age home on the pretext of being 'rustic and old-fashioned'. The father looks at the gate all day long in the hope that the son might come to visit him, but the son is busy only with his own promotion and social events.
After taking the ancestral property, an ungrateful son leaves his elderly mother at a crossroads and runs away. The mother is blind and has lost her memory, so she cannot even tell her home address. However, the son is now earning lakhs of rupees by building a huge market on the land that the mother took from him.
A wealthy businessman in the city keeps a dozen dogs and cats in his house and spends thousands of rupees a month on them. Meanwhile, the ailing father, who is languishing in the next room, is languishing due to lack of food and medicine. As important as the comfort of the animal is to the son, the father's life has become insignificant.
A school teacher, after retiring, used all her pension money to set up her son's business. But as the business prospered, the son forced his mother to live in a separate house, and the mother now works in other people's houses to earn money due to the torture of her daughter-in-law.
An influential political leader in the village pretends to be a very good person outside to protect his image, but his parents do not get to eat two meals a day at home. When the father goes out of the house wearing torn clothes, the son is locked in the house because it hurts his honor.
Islam has declared the duty to parents to be equivalent to worship. The Holy Quran says, "Do not say the word 'Uff' to them, and do not scold them." Disobedience to parents is considered the biggest sin after shirk, which brings terrible consequences in both this world and the hereafter.
In traditional religion, it is said, 'Mother God is God, Father God is God'. That is, parents are like gods. In the Ramayana, Ramachandra's devotion to his father and Shravan's devotion to his mother are the ultimate examples of this teaching. It is clearly mentioned in the scriptures that God does not accept any pilgrimage or worship of a child who hurts his parents.
In Christianity, one of the Ten Commandments is, 'Honor your father and mother'. Jesus Christ himself had instructed his mother to fulfill her duties even before he was crucified. The Bible says that those who curse or neglect their parents will have their lamp extinguished in darkness.
In Buddhism, parents have been compared to Brahma. According to Gautama Buddha, no one can repay the debt of their parents even if they carry it on their shoulders for 100 years.
In Chinese law, if children do not check on their elderly parents or do not visit them regularly, they can be imprisoned or fined a large sum. The government strictly enforces this law so that the elderly do not suffer from loneliness.
In France, there has been a law since 1953 where children are legally obliged to support their needy parents. If a child does not comply with this, money is deducted directly from his monthly salary and sent to the parents' account.
In Singapore, according to the 'Maintenance of Parents Act', if parents aged 60 or above are unable to support themselves, they can file a case against the child in court. The court determines the amount of monthly allowance based on the child's income and non-compliance is punishable by imprisonment. In India, the maintenance of parents is ensured through the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act. If a child throws his parents out of the house, there is a provision for the court to evict the child and re-establish the parents in the house.
Although the social security system in Germany is very strong, the financial responsibility for the long-term care of the parents has been imposed on the children through family law. If the child is well-off, he must personally support the parents in addition to receiving state support.
Vietnam has strict laws to protect family traditions. If he shows disrespect or neglects his parents, he has to face severe social punishments as well as imprisonment and labor.
In some states in the United States, the law of "negligence" is in effect. If a child neglects to pay the medical bills of an elderly parent, the hospital or service organization can directly sue the child and collect the money.
In Israel, serving parents is not only a moral but also a legal obligation. If a child abandons his or her parents there, he or she is convicted of a crime and sentenced to a long prison sentence.
In Japan, respecting the elderly is part of the tradition. However, in modern times, strict surveillance has been increased as cases of neglect have increased. If a child neglects a child, his or her name is made public or severe measures such as "public shaming" are taken.
Some of the thousands of punishments in such cases are: Recently, a court in China sentenced a child to a strict prison sentence for abandoning his or her elderly mother in the forest. After this ruling, the number of parents in nursing homes in that region has decreased significantly.
In India, a businessman's son was evicted from his luxurious house by a court and given possession of his elderly father. The court gave this historic verdict for the crime of living on his father's property and disrespecting him.
In Bangladesh, a policeman was arrested under the 'Parental Maintenance Act, 2013' for not looking for his parents.
In Singapore, a high-income expatriate son was sent to jail for refusing to pay monthly maintenance to his elderly mother. He was later released on bond and an advance payment.
To solve such problems, the Bangladesh government should be more strict in implementing this law and form a fast-track cell at the upazila level. There should be a complaint center for the elderly in every district where children will be summoned and immediate action will be taken as soon as the complaint is received.
The court should avoid lengthy proceedings in such cases and give judgment through a summary trial procedure. The judiciary can issue strict orders to suspend any other civil rights of the child until the maintenance of the parents is ensured.
The administration and law enforcement agencies should give utmost importance to the complaints of the parents. As soon as the complaint is received, the child should be brought under the law and brought back on the right path through counseling and, if necessary, detention.
The local government or union council chairman and members should keep a list of the elderly in each ward. If an elderly person is neglected, the local government should create social and administrative pressure on the child to ensure maintenance.
The imams and khatibs of the mosque should regularly raise awareness about the rights of parents and the afterlife consequences of ungrateful children in their Friday sermons. Their role in transforming the service of parents in religious discourse into a social movement is immense.
The aggrieved parents should take refuge in the law instead of silently enduring it. There is no shame in being aware of one's rights and informing the society; Rather, it will serve as a warning to other children.
Children should remember that today's tide is tomorrow's ebb. Sufi poet Jalaluddin Rumi said, "If you are cruel to your parents, then know that your children will treat you the same." Without the blessings of parents, no success in the world is permanent.
Finally, it can be said that parents are not a burden, but they are a blessing. Maintenance may be obtained through law, but love and respect come from the heart. We have to build a society where no parent has to shed tears in an old age home. True humanity and patriotism lie in serving parents. Let us not forget— "Mother is the apple of the eye, father is the crown of the head; only by serving them will work be successful."
Dr. Md. Anwar Hossain is an
essayist and President of the International Anti-Drug
Organization - Freedom International Anti-Alcohol. He can be reached
