Anuj vs State of U.P. and Another — Maintenance and Alimony | Allahabad HC (2025)

Anuj vs State of U.P. and Another — Maintenance and Alimony | Allahabad HC (2025)

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Revision disposed of finally at the admission stage: the Family Court's maintenance award of Rs. 12,000/- per month stands undisturbed (no reduction ordered); arrears of maintenance from the date of application to the date of order to be paid in twelve equal monthly installments together with the current month-to-month maintenance.

Issue for consideration

Whether the maintenance of Rs. 12,000/- per month awarded by the Family Court to the wife under Section 125 Cr.P.C. is excessive and disproportionate to the revisionist's income and warrants interference/reduction. +1 more

Court's answer

The maintenance fixed by the Trial Court (Rs. 12,000/- per month from the date of application) is to the extent of 25% of the revisionist's net salary (admitted net salary Rs. 48,628/-) and is in conformity with the observations of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Kulbhushan Kumar v. Raj Kumari and Rajnesh v. Neha.

Ratio / Principle

There is no illegality or impropriety in the order passed by the learned Trial Court dated 21.02.2025 and it does not warrant interference by this Court.

Key takeaways

Arrears of maintenance from the date of application to the date of the trial court's order shall be divided into twelve equal installments, payable month to month along with the current maintenance.ratio¶11

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Allahabad High Court (Court No. 79), Criminal Revision No. 1303 of 2025 (Neutral Citation 2025:AHC:79337), Hon'ble Subhash Chandra Sharma, J.; order dated 14.5.2025. Anuj sought setting aside of the judgment/order dated 21.02.2025 of Additional Principal Judge, Family Court No. 2, Muzaffarnagar, in Case No. 710 of 2023 (Smt. Riya Vs. Anuj) under Section 125 Cr.P.C. (P.S. Khatauli, District Muzaffarnagar), which awarded his wife (opposite party no. 2) maintenance of Rs. 12,000/- per month from the date of application; the revisionist argued the amount was excessive against his income as a Constable in B.S.F. The Court found the wife was living in her Maika due to the revisionist's neglect, that the award equals about 25% of his admitted net salary of Rs. 48,628/- (gross Rs. 54,216/-), and is in conformity with the Hon'ble Supreme Court's observations in Kulbhushan Kumar Vs. Raj Kumari (1970) 3 SCC 129 and Rajnesh Versus Neha and Another (2021) 2 SCC 324; hence no illegality or impropriety, warranting no interference. The revision was disposed of finally at the admission stage, with arrears of maintenance from the date of application to the date of order to be paid in twelve equal monthly installments along with current maintenance.

Neutral Citation No. - 2025:AHC:79337

Court No. - 79

Case :- CRIMINAL REVISION No. - 1303 of 2025

Revisionist :- Anuj Opposite Party :- State of U.P. and Another Counsel for Revisionist :- Dinesh Kumar Yadav Counsel for Opposite Party :- G.A.

Hon'ble Subhash Chandra Sharma,J.

Heard learned counsel for the revisionist as well as learned A.G.A. for the State and perused the material on record.

This criminal revision has been filed with a prayer to allow the present revision and set aside the judgment and order dated 21.02.2025 passed by the learned Additional Principal Judge, Family Court No. 2, Muzaffarnagar, in Case No. 710 of 2023 (Smt. Riya Vs. Anuj) under Section 125 Cr.P.C., Police Station Khatauli, District Muzaffarnagar.

It is submitted by learned counsel for the revisionist that in this case the opposite party no. 2 is wife of revisionist, who is living in her Maika without any sufficient reason and filed an application under Section 125 Cr.P.C. for maintenance, which was allowed by the learned Trial Court awarding maintenance Rs. 12,000/- per month from the date of application, which is excessive and disproportionate to the income of the revisionist. He further submits that opposite party no. 2 made false allegations against his mother and brothers and went to live in her Maika without any neglect either on his part or on the part of other members of his family. He further submits that he works as Constable in B.S.F. and gets gross salary Rs. 54,000/- out of which mess charges and other expenses are to be borne by him. The learned Trial Court has not taken into consideration those personal expenses of the revisionist but fixed amount, therefore, request to set aside and allow the revision reducing the amount of maintenance and also to divide the amount of arrears of maintenance in twelve easy installments.

Learned A.G.A. opposed the prayer as aforesaid.

On considering the facts and circumstances, submissions made by learned counsel for the revisionist as well as learned A.G.A. and perusal of record, the order passed by the learned trial court dated 21.02.2025, it appears that due to neglect of the revisionist the opposite party no. 2 is living in her Maika and he is working in B.S.F. Battalion 71, Headquarter Amritsar, Punjab and gets gross salary Rs. 54,216/- out of which after deduction net salary comes Rs. 48,628/- as admitted by the revisionist himself. The learned Trial Court has fixed the amount of maintenance in favour of wife / opposite party no. 2 Rs. 12,000/from the date of application, which is to the extent of 25% of net salary of the husband and is in conformity with the observation made by Hon'ble Supreme Court in the Case of Kulbhushan Kumar Vs. Raj Kumari (1970) 3 SCC 129 and Rajnesh Versus Neha and Another (2021) 2 Supreme Court Cases 324 . In this way there appears no any illegality or impropriety in the order passed by learned Trial Court and it does not warrant interference by this Court.

So far as the amount of arrears of maintenance from the date of application to the date of order is concerned, it shall be divided in to twelve equal installments to be payable with current amount of maintenance month to month.

Accordingly, this criminal revision is disposed of finally at the admission stage.

Order Date :- 14.5.2025 SK Srivastava

Digitally signed by :- SAILESH KUMAR SRIVASTAVA High Court of Judicature at Allahabad