Arjun Gupti (Business) 23 October 2012

Criteria for monthly maintenance?

A wife is not staying with her husband for 33 months though nobody has filed for divorce.
498A against husband is already in court for 6 months.
Wife is demanding maintenance (50k per month) from husband.
Husband had a decent earning till 2011 (around 9 lacs/year)
But currently (2012) he is at home doing some small jobs and hardly has any income.

In this case what exactly would be the maintenance that a husband has to give to his wife? Will maintenance be based on husband's current source of income? Or will the court review his past earnings? Also what happens if wife starts earning herself.

Thank you.

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9 Replies

Adv. Nikhil Seth (legal consultant (9867264707)) 23 October 2012

I f wife starts earning herself she is not liable for maintainance. even if husband is earning little but have good bank balance or investments or savings , than accordingly maintainance will be decided.

Adv.NIKHIL SETH

Mumbai

stanley (Freedom) 23 October 2012

Originally posted by : Arjun Gupti

A wife is not staying with her husband for 33 months though nobody has filed for divorce.

498A against husband is already in court for 6 months.

Wife is demanding maintenance (50k per month) from husband.

Husband had a decent earning till 2011 (around 9 lacs/year)

But currently (2012) he is at home doing some small jobs and hardly has any income.

In this case what exactly would be the maintenance that a husband has to give to his wife? Will maintenance be based on husband's current source of income?

Interim maintanence is based on current income

Or will the court review his past earnings? Also what happens if wife starts earning herself.

No maintanence

Thank you.

Arjun Gupti (Business) 23 October 2012

Okay but how will the court or girl know about husband's savings, investments etc.? The husband has other family members to support so why there is any maintenance for a wife who left the matrimonial house herself?

stanley (Freedom) 23 October 2012

Normally while in marriage when love rules over the mind husbands discloses all his savings inside the four corners of his bedroom . And if your wife knows about this than you know what has to be done with that . And its true for desertation no maintanence but it has to be proved by you.

Arjun Gupti (Business) 23 October 2012

Originally posted by : stanley
	Normally while in marriage when love rules over the mind husbands discloses all his savings inside the four corners of his bedroom . And if your wife knows about this than you know what has to be done with that . And its true for desertation no maintanence but it has to be proved by you.

Okay so husband can prove that wife left him but it may take 2-3-4 years. So what happens to the maintenance case? Will the maintenance be put on hold until husband proves to court that wife left the matrimonial house at her own wish? What is the process? To be honest I am starting to hate Indian Judicial system.

stanley (Freedom) 23 October 2012

Now wife makes a big hue and cry in front of judge and begins to shed crocodile tears than you should know what the outcome would be .

Why 2-3-4 yrs to prove that wife left husband .Read DV act within 60 days of first hearing reliefs to be passed .Do you feel opp counsel will keep quite dont you feel he will file interim application for maintanence

Arjun Gupti (Business) 23 October 2012

Originally posted by : Ashish Davessar
	Current earnings of the husband ought to be taken into account. Past earnings cannot be the touchstone for deciding maintenance. The dependancies of the husband also have to be looked into. Maintenance cannot be a tool of unjust enrichment.

Ashish, thanks for the information. Also in this case wife is more 'qualified' than the husband and was doing job (good earning) before marriage. So can the maintenace be dropped considering that wife is more qualified and can earn more than husband? Also why should husband share his earnings with somebody who a) has filed 498A against him, b) has left the house with her own consent? Why we do have such stupid laws in our country? Are we really a great nation? NO.