Judgment
Justice Prem Narayan Singh said,
The Madhya Pradesh High Court held that any eligible spouse, including a wife, cannot sit idle just to get maintenance from her partner.
“Eligible spouse should not sit idle or remain idle based on maintenance amount received from her husband. Section 125 of CrPC was not designed to create an army of people waiting to get maintenance from the income of the other spouse.”
It thus reduced the amount of maintenance payable to a wife who holds a master’s degree and can earn.
The bench remarked,
- “It can be presumed that she can easily earn a good income by engaging herself in any work or occupation. Neither a married woman is prevented from taking up a job, nor a married woman living separately and receiving maintenance from her husband is prevented from employing herself and earning some income for her livelihood.”
- The wife alleged abuse and claimed that her husband earned significantly more than the amount reported, while the husband argued that she was financially independent, earning from both her job in Dubai and business in Indore.
- The Court assessed the financial position of the husband and accepted the payment of ₹21,75,000 made by him earlier as alimony and the reduction in his income due to the loss of job. The Court therefore reduced the maintenance amount from ₹60,000 to ₹40,000.
- “Based on the entire analysis and the law laid down by the Hon’ble Supreme Court, considering the income and liabilities of the husband and the fact that the wife is a well-educated woman and has her source of income, this Court is of the view that the maintenance amount of Rs 60,000 per month is excessive and should be reduced to Rs 40,000 per month.”
Case Title- Shikha Vs. Avnish Madam