India is possibly the only country in the world, where a woman can be married for one single day, but as per law, she is entitled to lifelong maintenance from her estranged husband without any charges on the man being proven.
And the below case will shock you even more, because a wife in India is legally permitted to ask for maintenance even after 36-years of separation. Yes, you read that right!
Case:
The present petition has been filed by the petitioner husband under section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 challenging the order passed by Gram Nyayalay, Aspur, District Dungarpur (“Trial Court”), whereby the Trial Court had partly allowed the application for interim maintenance filed by the respondent-wife. The Trial Court had directed the petitioner-husband to pay a sum of Rs 5,000 per month as interim maintenance.
As per the petitioner, the couple got married in February 1976 and have been living separately since 1986 (36-years).
Advocate Mohit Singhvi who appeared for the husband argued that the present petition under section 125 of Cr.P.C. filed in the year 2021, is clearly an abuse of the process of law as the petitioner and the respondent got married on 17.02.1976 and have been living separately since 1986.
He further argued that the Trial Court has treated petitioner’s income to be Rs 1,00,000 whereas his return of income tax shows that his income is approximately Rs 40,000 per month.
Rajasthan High Court
The Rajasthan High Court observed that the husband, who admittedly earns Rs 40,000 per month, cannot be absolved of his obligation to pay interim maintenance, merely because the wife has chosen to file the application after 36-years of separation.
Justice Dinesh Mehta, dismissed the husband’s petition and said,
In the opinion of this Court, an order under section 125 of Cr.P.C. is in the nature of interim maintenance and husband, who admittedly earns Rs 40,000 per month cannot be absolved of his obligation to pay interim maintenance, merely because the respondent – wife has chosen to file the application after 36 years of separation.
The court also refused to interfere in the present petition on the ground that the petitioner has failed to point out any jurisdictional error or apparent error on the face of record and moreover, a meagre sum of Rs 5,000 has been ordered to be paid.
Further, the court noted that the fact as to whether the petitioner and the wife are living separately since 1986, so also the circumstances in which respondent has filed the petition for maintenance, are yet to be finally determined by the Court concerned.
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