No charges have been pressed yet against Milton Samaddar but the way the media has been projecting him and his deed and the police are talking, this is certainly coming his way.

He is in all probability a masquerader who has taken advantage of public sentiments and maybe even guilt of branding himself as a Good Samaritan willing to look after those who don't have anyone to look after. And use that equation to seek money. The side business he ran like selling kidneys and maybe other organs or two is not really a big deal as the organ trade is criminal but quite common.

What brought him down is a misunderstanding is weak knowledge of how far one can go in the informal fraud sector. He is guilty of over expansion and ambitions while using the media to fulfill his goals. Obviously, he is ambitious but not very smart unlike the successful variety. Poor guy, with a name and nomenclature like that the future will always be glum in Bangladesh.

The orphans and the elderly

The reactions to the various news items show that while many are willing to accept orphanages as a reality and promote it which includes an opportunity to gain sawab, that is not the case with old age homes or elderly care.

Such outfits are immediately stigmatized and even demonized. In some ways society maintains a double standard on this. Helpless vulnerable children are fine and people can gather around to help them but old age care organizers are sort of "devils" and monsters and Milton has provided the evidence that such people are exactly like that. He has in some if not many eyes become the symbol of old age homes. And such homes are against the traditional Bengali family where the elderly live and die under the loving care of the family.

In the process the entire elderly homes concept is trashed. As if society's big evil has been caught doing what everyone hates. Yet the vulnerability of the elderly is a big fact of life and its denials are bigger as well.

The elderly scenario and family difficulties

Years back, I was commissioned by the BBC to produce a radio series on the elderly on both Bangladesh and Indian West Bengal. It was then that I firsthand saw the reality. The most important lesson was that it was a large and real problem and at the same time hidden socially. People didn't want to come to terms with the fact of elderly suffering. As a result, there was no pressure on public expenditure spending hence little was done and whatever was, were basically superfluous. But it was the social denial that was serious.

The number of cases of elderly neglect were many. There were no complaints as these elderly were afraid to reach out to anyone as none would be believed. However, the socio-economic factors that led to such treatment were real too and also never discussed though they were inevitable given the socio-economic situation.

For example, housing was a major issue as most middle-class citizens live in stressed housing conditions and a 3 roomed apartment can't provide comfortable living for a family of six minimum which often leads to tensions, conflict and ultimately abuse. But the social stigma of "anti-family" attitude is so prevalent that no one speaks out. Thus, it continues.

Special food and medicines for the elderly are another burden which middle class families can't cope with. When there are young people around, the elderly will never be given a priority. This was made most obvious when it's the elderly who died and suffered most during the covid pandemic and not just here but everywhere.

Several years back, I asked my MA students to do a quick study on the elderly and their findings were clear that neglect of the elderly cuts across all segments of the middle and even the upper class. By refusing to acknowledge that it happens, we prolong their suffering.

The best endorsement of elderly homes came from the elderly themselves both in Bangladesh and India. They all said, they had gained self-respect, were treated better and their relationship with their families improved after their move to the homes.

However, we live in hypocrisy and the media feeds on that. They publish stories of the "agony" of life in elderly homes preventing most to face reality. In today's Bangladesh, like in the rest of the world such facilities are needed and there is enough social funding available even if the government doesn't want to spend to establish more homes. Just like giving money to yetimkhana and mosques are popular, so can be elderly homes. In fact, the mazars, as per several studies, is the largest provider of support for the extremely poor elderly.

So, the problem is there, the solution is there but the will is being suppressed. If it continues, the Milton Samaddars will constantly rise to the occasion and add more to the suffering.