Can an Adulterous Wife Claim Maintenance?
Maintenance, often referred to as alimony or spousal support, is a legal provision designed to ensure financial support for a spouse who is unable to support themselves after divorce or separation. It is a complicated matter that involves a number of variables, including the spouses' financial capabilities, their individual contributions to the marriage, and any wrongdoing that may have taken place throughout the relationship. One such tense circumstance is when an adulterous wife tries to make a maintenance claim. The purpose of this research is to examine the ethical issues and societal viewpoints related to this subject.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court rejected a man's request to overturn a decision made by a family court in Rewari, noting that "a single act of adultery or an isolated lapse of wife will not disentitle the wife to claim maintenance." In October 2021, the Rewari family court denied the petitioner's request for new proof to support his wife's purported writing through a handwriting expert because she had written about her "adulterous relationship" in 2005. According to the facts of the case, the respondent-wife filed a lawsuit under Section 125 of the CrPC on behalf of herself and her three minor children, claiming that she married the petitioner in April 2004. However, the petitioner (spouse) has abandoned her and the three kids and failed to provide for them.
Living in adultery is a phrase that deserves special attention. Living in quasi-permanent union with a person outside of marriage constitutes living in adultery, which is a shocking act of adultery. (Kasthuri v. Ramaswamy, 1979 Cri. L. J. 7411). Living in adultery implies that there should be evidence of adulterous behavior either immediately prior to or immediately following the wife's petition for support. The dissolving of matrimonial relations is adultery.
Therefore, it is evident that adultery is not a random act. The woman is only committing adultery when she adopts it as a way of life. As a result, the phrase "living in adultery" as used in Section 125(4) of the Code of Criminal Procedure refers to an ongoing relationship between the wife and the adulterer. A single act of immorality or a few lapses in morality do not, however, preclude the wife from claiming maintenance from the husband under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
A man is not required to provide support for his former wife and her children when suspicions of infidelity are substantiated, according to a recent ruling by the Bombay High Court. A criminal petition filed by an ex-wife in 2016 contesting her ex-husband's cancellation of maintenance payments of $500 for her and $400 for her son was being heard by Justice Nitin Sambre. The man divorced the wife on April 27, 2000, in accordance with Section 13 (divorce) of the Hindu Marriage Act, citing infidelity as the reason. The pair had been married since May 6, 1980. The widow had previously been given 150 and her son 25 as compensation, which she sought to increase.On August 12, 2010, the magistrate approved her request, and increased the compensation to 500.
The Supreme Court's panel of Justices Dinesh Maheshwari and Bela M. Trivedi recently ruled that it is the husband's sacred obligation to assist his wife and their young children financially. If the husband is physically able and unable to evade his commitment except on the grounds specified in the statute, he must work to acquire money to complete this obligation, the bench said. When the respondent-husband in the matter before it claimed that he had no source of income because his business had been closed and could therefore not pay maintenance to his wife and children as instructed, the bench made this observation.
When the respondent-husband in the matter before it claimed that he had no source of income because his business had been closed and could therefore not pay maintenance to his wife and children as instructed, the bench made this observation.
The bench stated that it was neither impressed by nor prepared to accept such statements and noted that the respondent, being physically able, is required to support his wife and the young child by working and earning a living.
The court in this case determined that although the respondent had a substantial source of income, he failed to support the appellants, the wife, and the children. In this case, the wife has filed a Special Leave Petition in an effort to overturn the decision of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which in 2018 refused her revision motion stemming from the Family Court of Faridabad's decree rejecting maintenance allowance.
According to Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure from 1973, the wife had requested support on the grounds that the husband had allegedly treated her cruelly, tortured her for dowry, and neglected their son and daughter. Because of the harassment, the wife and the kids were forced to leave the marital home. The spouse opposed the petition and refuted every charge of harassment and dowry demand.
However, a wife is not eligible to get maintenance if she is living in adultery or if she refuses to remain with her husband for whatever reason. She will not be eligible to receive any such support if she marries again after the date of her divorce. A husband may request the revocation of any such maintenance order for any of these reasons
Written -By: Radhika Agarwal
