SOURCE :- SIASAT NEWS
Bengaluru: In a significant ruling on matrimonial maintenance, the Karnataka High Court has held that a husband cannot be compelled to pay maintenance to his wife if she is financially independent, earns more than him and has no other dependants.
The High Court allowed a petition filed by a husband challenging a trial court order directing him to pay monthly maintenance to his estranged wife. Justice Dr Chillakur Sumalatha set aside the lower court’s order, observing that maintenance cannot be granted merely on the assumption that a husband is always obligated to financially support his wife.
Wife earns Rs 1 lakh a month
The case pertained to a couple who got married in 2024 but began living separately within a few months of their marriage. Court records showed that the husband was earning a monthly salary of Rs 60,646, while the wife was employed with a monthly income of around Rs 1 lakh.
Despite earning significantly more than her husband, the wife had approached the trial court seeking maintenance. The lower court had directed the husband to pay Rs 20,000 per month as maintenance. Challenging the order, the husband moved the High Court.
After examining the financial status of both parties, the High Court noted that the wife was economically self-sufficient and did not have the responsibility of maintaining children or any other dependants. Under such circumstances, the court said there was no legal justification to compel the husband, who earned substantially less, to pay maintenance.
The court observed that maintenance is intended to provide financial support to a spouse who is unable to maintain herself and should not be awarded as a matter of course merely because of the marital relationship.
Justice Sumalatha further remarked that courts should avoid granting maintenance solely on the traditional notion that it is always the husband’s responsibility to support his wife. Instead, each case must be decided based on the financial capacity and circumstances of both parties.
Maintenance should be awarded only when wife lacks sufficient income: HC
The High Court clarified that interim or permanent maintenance should be awarded only when the wife establishes that she lacks sufficient independent income to maintain herself at a standard of living comparable to that enjoyed during the marriage.
Setting aside the trial court’s order, the High Court reiterated that where a wife is financially secure, earns a higher salary than her husband and has no additional financial responsibilities, directing the husband to pay maintenance would not be legally sustainable.
The ruling is expected to serve as an important precedent in matrimonial disputes involving maintenance claims, emphasising that such relief must be determined on the basis of financial need and not gender-based assumptions.
SOURCE : SIASAT
