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Divorced Women's Rights: Maintenance Despite Desertion Claim
23 Sep
Summary
- Divorced women can seek maintenance from ex-husbands, even if divorced for desertion.
- The Allahabad High Court reinstated a woman's maintenance claim rejected by a family court.
- Husband ordered to pay Rs 4,000 monthly interim maintenance pending fresh adjudication.
A significant ruling by the Allahabad High Court's Lucknow Bench has affirmed that divorced women retain the right to claim maintenance from their ex-husbands. This entitlement persists even if the divorce decree was issued due to the wife's alleged desertion, as long as she remains unmarried and lacks the means to support herself. The court's decision came while allowing a criminal revision petition filed by Suneeta, whose maintenance claim was initially dismissed by the Family Court in Sultanpur.
Justice Ram Manohar Narayan Mishra noted that a divorced woman is legally considered a wife for the limited purpose of Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) concerning maintenance. The mere fact of a desertion-based divorce does not automatically disqualify her claim. The court found that the Family Court had erred in completely rejecting Suneeta's claim. While her entitlement for the period before the divorce requires separate examination, the court directed that her claim from September 25, 2014, the divorce date, be reconsidered. Additionally, her minor son is entitled to maintenance until adulthood, with adjustments for any amounts already received.
The husband had obtained an ex-parte divorce decree on September 25, 2014, alleging desertion. Records indicated he had subsequently remarried. Pending a fresh adjudication by the Family Court, the High Court ordered the husband to pay Rs 4,000 per month as interim maintenance to Suneeta. The matter has been remanded to the Family Court for a new hearing and decision.
