Wife’s maintenance doubled as court says Rs 10,000 ‘too meagre’ for dignified life

Justice Lakshmi Kant Shukla granted relief to the woman.

Plea seeking hike

The woman had approached the high court seeking to enhance the interim maintenance amount from Rs 10,000 per month to Rs 30,000 per month.

Her counsel told the court that the family court had erred in law while passing the impugned order. It was stated that the family court had overlooked the guidelines of the Supreme Court, where it has specifically held that the maintenance amount should be realistic, reasonable and in line with the standard of living of both parties.

It was further argued that her husband had been serving as a senior resident doctor, earning around Rs 90,000 to Rs 1 lakh per month, and that the maintenance awarded was grossly inadequate.

Opposing the plea, the husband submitted that the wife had herself admitted to earning Rs 10,000 per month as a contractual data entry operator and that he was now in private medical practice and did not earn as much as alleged. He argued that the amount fixed by the family court was sufficient.

In response, the wife stated that she had worked as a contractual data entry operator before marriage but was compelled by her husband to leave the job after their marriage because he was then a resident doctor in a reputed institution.

After considering the arguments, the court noted that the husband had earned between Rs 80,000 and Rs 1 lakh per month while serving as a resident doctor until 2025 and was presently practising privately as a doctor. Considering his presumptive income and status, along with the principles laid down by the Supreme Court, the court held that the interim maintenance fixed by the family court was inadequate.

The court partly allowed the revision and modified the family court’s order by enhancing the interim maintenance to Rs 20,000 per month.

“The amount of the interim maintenance is hereby enhanced from Rs 10,000 to Rs. 20,000 per month. The Opposite party no. 2 is directed to pay a sum of Rs. 20,000 per month as an interim maintenance to the revisionist from the date of this order,” the order read.

Maintenance hike upheld

In another case, the high court upheld an order enhancing a woman’s monthly maintenance from Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000, observing that it is impossible for a woman to sustain herself on such a meagre amount in the face of rising inflation. Justice Achal Sachdev dismissed a plea filed by a man challenging orders of a family court that had enhanced the maintenance payable to his first wife and later rejected his application seeking recall of the ex parte order.

“Undoubtedly, inflation has risen significantly during these 11 years. Even the wages of a labourer have increased significantly. In such a time of inflation, it is impossible to support a woman with just one thousand rupees,” the court said on May 11 regarding the husband wife dispute.

The court took note of evidence showing that the husband was employed as a labourer and was financially capable of paying the enhanced maintenance.