01Facts
The respondent-wife applied for maintenance under Section 125 CrPC.
The JMFC, Jorhat, awarded her ₹10,000 per month from the date of its order, and the Sessions Judge dismissed the petitioner-husband’s revision against that award
p. 2 · p. 9The husband challenged both orders under Sections 482 and 401 CrPC, contending that the wife had voluntarily left the matrimonial home without sufficient cause and was therefore disqualified from maintenance under Section 125(4) CrPC
pp. 2–4The wife maintained that she had left because of mental and physical torture.
pp. 5–6The marriage and the husband’s income as an Assistant Professor were undisputed; the wife had no independent income
pp. 5–6 · p. 802Issues
i.Whether the respondent-wife was disentitled to maintenance under Section 125(4) CrPC on the ground that she had voluntarily withdrawn from the husband’s society without sufficient reason
pp. 3–4 · pp. 8–9ii.Whether the concurrent maintenance orders warranted interference in the petitioner’s criminal petition
p. 903Law Applied
Section 125 CrPC provides for maintenance to a wife unable to maintain herself, while Section 125(4) disentitles a wife from maintenance in specified circumstances, including where she lives separately without sufficient reason.
The court also referred to Rina Kumari @ Rina Devi @ Reena v. Dinesh Kumar Mahto @ Dinesh Kumar Mahato, which held that a decree for restitution of conjugal rights and the wife’s non-compliance do not, by themselves, disqualify her from maintenance under Section 125(4)
p.Provisions in the judgment · 3 · Linked ones open on LawLens
Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 Section 482Section 401Section 125
Original Court PDF
Sankar BiswasvsPuspa Paul
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