Husband challenged an interim maintenance order of Rs.20,000 per month granted to his wife in divorce proceedings. The High Court found the Family Court passed the order without requisite material, as the wife withheld bank statements and gave no details of her prior employment or earnings. It set aside the order and remanded for fresh consideration.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
NC: 2024:KHC:8588 WP No. 14715 of 2023
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 1ST DAY OF MARCH, 2024
BEFORE
THE HON'BLE SMT. JUSTICE LALITHA KANNEGANTI
WRIT PETITION NO. 14715 OF 2023 (GM-FC)
BETWEEN:
MR.HARSHA GOWDA S/O MR.HUCHE GOWDA, AGED ABOUT 38 YEARS, R/AT #23, 2ND CROSS, S.V.G.N.S.S LAYOUT, 3RD STAGE, 4TH BLOCK, BASAVESHWARA NAGAR, BENGALURU - 560 079.
…PETITIONER
(BY SRI. N. GOWTHAM RAGHUNATH, ADVOCATE)
AND:
Digitally signed by SUVARNA T Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA
MRS. N. CHAITRA W/O MR.HARSHA GOWDA, AGED ABOUT 34 YEARS, R/A #95, 5TH MAIN ROAD, 2ND 'A' CROSS, R.T.NAGAR POST, BHUVANESHWARI NAGAR, BENGALURU - 560 032.
…RESPONDENT
(BY SRI. DAYANAND HIREMATH, ADVOCATE)
THIS WP IS FILED PRAYING TO SETTING ASIDE THE ORDER DATED 23.05.2023 PASSED BY THE 3RD ADDL FAMILY JUDGE AT BENGALURU ON I.A.NO.4 IN MC NO.2464/2020 (ANNX-A) AND CONSEQUENTLY DISMISS I.A.NO.4 IN MC NO.2464/2020 AND ETC.
NC: 2024:KHC:8588 WP No. 14715 of 2023
THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR FINAL HEARING, THIS DAY, THE COURT MADE THE FOLLOWING:
ORDER
The present Writ Petition is filed by the petitioner/husband aggrieved by the order dated 23.05.2023 passed on I.A.No.4 in M.C.No.2464/2020 by the III Additional Principal Judge, Family Court,
Bengaluru.
30.11.2015. In view of the disputes between the parties, the petitioner/husband has filed M.C.No.2464/2020 against the respondent/wife seeking divorce on the ground of cruelty. In the said M.C.No.2464/2020, the present I.A.No.4 is filed seeking interim maintenance of
Rs.50,000/- per month.
respondent/wife is a double graduate, holding two degrees in B.E and M.B.A and was working as a Senior Technician and HR Consultant in a reputed company and earning an
NC: 2024:KHC:8588 WP No. 14715 of 2023
amount of Rs.32,250/- per month. According to the respondent/wife, she is unemployed, without any movable and immovable assets. Now, she is depending upon her aged parents for her livelihood.
NC: 2024:KHC:8588 WP No. 14715 of 2023
maintained in HDFC Bank before the Court below even though she referred to the same in her affidavit of assets and liabilities. The Court below has also observed that withholding the relevant material documents needs to be taken into consideration, in view of the specific contention taken by the husband. The Court below observed that the wife has not approached the Court with clean hands and an adverse inference needs to be drawn.
NC: 2024:KHC:8588 WP No. 14715 of 2023
petitioner/husband submits that the Court below has given
a finding that the wife has not come to the Court with clean hands and she has not produced relevant material before the Court and also having observed that she is a double graduate has granted the maintenance of an amount of Rs.20,000/-. It is submitted that the Court below has found that as per the orders of Hon'ble Apex Court the relevant statements are not filed before the Court, the Court also observed that an adverse inference
has to be drawn. In the light of those observations, the
Court below ought not to have granted the maintenance.
NC: 2024:KHC:8588 WP No. 14715 of 2023
respondent/wife. It is submitted that as per the order dated 05.01.2024 passed by this Court, the petitioner/husband has deposited an amount of Rs.3,00,000/- and he was permitted to withdraw the same. It is submitted that no grounds are made out seeking interference with the interim arrangement made by the Court below by granting the maintenance of an amount of Rs.20,000/- per month.
perused the entire material on record. There is no dispute about the educational qualifications of both the petitioner and the respondent i.e., husband and wife. Both of them are well educated. According to the wife, she resigned her job and she is not able to maintain herself. This Court has perused the affidavit filed by the wife wherein except stating that the husband is drawing an amount of Rs.1,50,000/- per month and she is unemployed, there is no whisper about what was her earlier job or what she was doing, how much she was earning and when did she lost
the job. Nothing has been stated and when it comes to the statement of assets and liabilities, the Court observed that the wife except giving the particulars of her bank accounts, she has not furnished the bank statements before the Court.
Court below, the objections that are filed and also the order passed by the Court below. It appears that the Court below without there being any requisite material, has passed an order granting interim maintenance of an amount of Rs.20,000/- per month.
NC: 2024:KHC:8588 WP No. 14715 of 2023
ORDER
i. The Order dated 23.05.2023 on I.A.No.4 in
M.C.No.2464/2020 passed by the III Additional Principal Judge, Family Court, Bengaluru is set aside and the matter is remanded back to the Court below.
ii. Both the parties shall file their respective statements along with all the relevant documents and the Court below shall consider the same and pass appropriate orders within a period of eight weeks from the date of receipt of copy of the order.
iii. The parties shall file their respective objections, pleadings and evidence within 10 days from the date of receipt of the copy of the order.
iv. As per the earlier order passed by this Court, the petitioner has already deposited an amount of Rs.3,00,000/as interim arrangement. The
respondent/wife is permitted to withdraw an amount
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of Rs.1,50,000/- and the husband is at liberty to withdraw the remaining amount.
v. The above arrangement at clause (iv) is subject to further orders that would be passed by the Court below and in the event, if any adverse orders are passed against the wife, she has to return an amount of Rs.1,50,000/- to the husband.
SD/JUDGE
MEG List No.: 1 Sl No.: 2
1 issue framed by the court
Whether the Family Court's interim maintenance award of Rs.20,000 per month to the wife was sustainable despite her withholding bank statements and material from the court.
Mr. Harsha Gowda S/o Mr. Huche Gowda
Mrs. N. Chaitra W/o Mr. Harsha Gowda
Lalitha Kanneganti
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
