Two elderly parents who moved into their late son’s home in Phoenix at his invitation must vacate the property by the end of July following a KwaZulu-Natal High Court ruling — even though the judge criticised their daughter-in-law’s conduct as “mean-spirited”. In a strongly worded judgment, Judge Rob Mossop said elderly people could not be treated as disposable, but found that, in law, the widow — Sarojanie Govindan, wife of the late Durban architect — was entitled to reclaim possession of the property. Elderly members of society are not inanimate objects that can simply be discarded and moved out of sight when it suits others.
They are living, breathing people with feelings and expectations, who must be treated with compassion and afforded the dignity to which they are entitled. The case involves Thamanthran Govindan (79) and his wife, Romila (72), who have lived in a ground-floor unit in Phoenix since April 2021, four months before their son — Durban architect Thamanthran Govindan — died in August that year. The property is jointly registered in the name of the late architect and his widow, Sarojanie Govindan, who is both the executrix and sole heir of his estate.
The elderly couple moved into the home at the invitation of their son and daughter-in-law under an informal arrangement in which they paid only for utilities. There was no written lease, no fixed term and no formal agreement governing the duration of their stay. After her husband’s death, Sarojanie said she needed to sell the property due to financial pressure and, in 2022, issued notices instructing her in-laws to vacate. When they refused, she approached the high court for an eviction order under the Prevention of Illegal Eviction from and Unlawful Occupation of Land Act (PIE Act).
Read Full Article on The Witness
