ORDER :

R. PONGIAPPAN, J.

“How sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is to have a thankless child”

– William Shakespeare –

King Lear – Act 1, Scene 4

2. Old age is a curse especially for a well heeled widower with children. The life of Shakespeare’s King Lear bears testimony to this.

3. For the sake of convenience and to avoid prolixity, the principal actors in this case will be referred to by their names.

4. The facts leading to the filing of this contempt petition are as follows:

4.1. The petitioner, P.S. Murthi, is now aged 87 years. He was employed in the Department of Telecommunication as a Senior Officer. He is blessed with five children, viz., Raghu (55 years), Vijay (53 years), Suraj (50 years), Laxmi Rajah (44 years) and Gokul (40 years). However, he is not lucky like King Pandu, father of the Pancha Pandavas, in that, after the death of his wife in 2011, his life became miserable on account of his sons.

4.2 When he was in service and when his children were young, he was allotted a plot by the Tamil Nadu Housing Board on 26.05.1972, in which, he built a two-storeyed house bearing Door No.K-90 (New No.K-4), 14th Street, Anna Nagar, Chennai 600 102. He retired 27 years ago and was peacef