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Rahul   23 August 2021

Working wife asking alimony frm handicap unemployed husband?

QUESTION: Is working wife entitled for a permanent alimony from an Unemployed and HANDICAP husband?

Dear Learned Advocates,

BACKGROUND: - 

- Hindu Marriage in 2007

-Son was born, out of wedlock in 2008.

-Husband/Myself, handicap due to accident, so wife left in 2009.

-Wife never let husband or husbands side of family to see his son.

-Husband filed for divorce in 2011. Husband unemployed due to handicap status.

-Whereas, wife is software Engineer, and earns Rs. 87,000 / month. And has a flat in Mumbai worth 5.75 Crores.

POINTS:-

 - We had many counselling sessions till now.

- Working wife is hellbent in asking for a permanent alimony of Rs. 60 Lcs. for MCD.

-  Separate maintenance for child, till child is 25 years of age.

- Property from husbands mother (her mother-in-law).

Maintenance (Interim) Husband is unemployed, but is paying interim maintenance of Rs. 9500 for child, already.

QUESTION: Apart from child support, what is working wife (salary = Rs. 87,000/month) entitled to?

NOTE: She already has a 5.75 Crore worth luxury flat in Mumbai !!!

Thank you all in advance.



 



Learning

 2 Replies

Ananya Gosain   25 August 2021

Greetings!

There are mainly two types of alimony-

  1. Given at the time of court proceedings- This is usually the maintenance amount.
  2. Given at the time of legal separation- This can be given either in a lump sum or as a fixed monthly or quarterly payment or as per the requirements of the spouse.

Coming to your question, In case the wife is a working woman, but there is a considerable difference between her and her husband’s net earnings, she will still be awarded alimony to help her maintain the same standard of living as her husband. However in case husband is unemployed, he can seek relief and claim maintenance under section 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act 1955. 

After the divorce, either of the spouses has the right to claim alimony. Though this is not an absolute right and can be granted by the court depending upon the circumstances and financial conditions of both spouses. Section 24 entitles not only the wife but also the husband to claim maintenance pendente lite on showing that he has no independent source of income.

However, the husband will have to satisfy the court that either due to physical or mental disability he is handicapped to earn and support his livelihood.

CASE EXAMPLE- Gandhinagar family court magistrate DT Soni directed Rajvinder Kaur to pay alimony to her husband Dalbir Singh, a cricket icon who had met with an accident. Wife paid Rs 10,000 per month as alimony. In his petition, the ex-cricketer had alleged that his wife, used to confine him in their house and harassed him physically and mentally.

In Nivya VM v. Shivaprasad N.K. 2015 the court stated that when either the wife or the husband, has no independent income and the necessary expenses of the proceeding, it may, on the application of the wife or the husband, order the respondent to pay the expenses of the proceeding, and monthly during the proceeding such sum considering petitioner’s own income and the income of the respondent, it may seem to the court to be reasonable.

For more detailed understanding, visit https://blog.ipleaders.in/alimony-laws/

Regards 

Rahul   26 August 2021

Dear Ananya Madam,

Thank you so much for a detailed explanation. I do appreciate it.

WIFE: In our case, wife is a Software Engineer, earning Rs, 87,000 + Rs. 52,000 from her Mumbai Luxury flat.

HUSBAND: Handicap and Unemployed.

QUESTION: Still wife is asking for a huge alimony between Rs. ,65,000 to Rs, 75,000. or a one time alimony  of Rs. 60 Lacks.

We had 8 counselling sessions in last many years, and every time, even the counsellor is asking me that how much I am willing to pay, as if its written somewhere in ther law, that : "Its only the husband who has to pay the wife".

What to respond to such Counsellors or Judges, who thing like that?

Thanks again for your time and be greatly blessed.


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