Delhi High Court rules under Section 125 CrPC that if a wife fails to disclose salary slips or financial records, it can lead to denial of maintenance.
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NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court recently clarified an important aspect of maintenance proceedings under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). It ruled that if a wife fails to disclose her latest salary slips or financial records while seeking maintenance, the court may draw an adverse inference against her.
Case Background
A woman filed a revision petition challenging a Family Court’s decision, which denied her maintenance but allowed maintenance for her daughter. The Family Court observed that the wife had concealed her actual income and failed to produce recent salary slips despite multiple opportunities.
The wife initially presented her December 2016 salary slip showing an income of ₹33,052. Later, she claimed to be working as a temporary teacher in a U.P. government school, earning an income of only ₹10,000 per month after being terminated from her earlier job. However, she could not produce any salary certificate or documentation to substantiate this claim.
The husband contested her plea, arguing that she deliberately withheld material information and misrepresented her financial position to secure maintenance.
High Court’s Observations
Justice Dr. Swarana Kanta Sharma, while hearing the case, upheld the Family Court’s findings. The Court observed:
- The primary ingredient for the grant of maintenance under Section 125 CrPC is the wife’s inability to maintain herself.
- The wife’s omission to submit recent salary records, without a plausible explanation, casts serious doubt on her claim.
- Such concealment justifies an adverse inference against her, rendering her plea speculative and unsustainable.
The Court therefore upheld the denial of maintenance to the wife.
On the husband’s challenge to the maintenance awarded to their daughter, the Court rejected his plea. It held that the amount granted, approximately one-third of his income, was reasonable and not excessive.
The Court strongly reiterated that:
“The law is settled that a child’s right to maintenance is independent of the disputes between her parents, and the father is bound to maintain the children… Section 125 of the Cr.P.C is a beneficial provision, premised on a moral obligation of husband and father, and intended to prevent, inter alia, the wife and children from being subjected to the adversities of vagrancy and destitution.”
Section 125 CrPC (Maintenance of Wife)
Section 125 of the CrPC, 1973 ensures maintenance for wives, children, and parents unable to maintain themselves, irrespective of religion.
Maintenance of Wife:
Under Section 125(1)(a), a Magistrate may order a husband with sufficient means to provide a monthly allowance to his wife if she cannot maintain herself.
The term wife includes divorced women who have not remarried. However, a wife is not entitled to maintenance if she is living in adultery, refuses to live with her husband without sufficient cause, or if both live separately by mutual consent.
Courts can also grant interim maintenance during the pendency of proceedings.
Appearance:
For the Petitioner: Advocate M.R. Chanchal
For the Respondents: Advocate Naresh Kumar Chahar, Advocates Puja Mann, Vipin Kumar Yadav, Nischaya Nigam and Akshay Handa
Case Title:
X & Anr. v. The State & Anr.
CRL.REV. P. 395/2022
Read Judgment:
Click Here to Read More Reports on Maintenance
