Wife and minor son sought interim maintenance in a maintenance suit; Family Court awarded Rs.10,000 p.m. to wife plus litigation expenses after earlier order was set aside by this Court. Husband's writ petition challenging quantum and date-from which awarded; court upheld Family Court order and dismissed petition.
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 29TH DAY OF JANUARY, 2024
BEFORE
THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE ASHOK S.KINAGI WRIT PETITION NO. 24938 OF 2018 (GM-FC)
BETWEEN:
G. SREENIVASA MURTHY, AGED ABOUT 43 YEARS, S/O SRI. C. GOPAL, R/O NO. 175, 6TH CROSS, NAVILU ROAD, ’A’ AND ‘B’ BLOCK, KUVEMPU NAGAR, MYSORE - 570 023, AND ALSO AT ASST. ENGINEER, WARD NO.144, O/O THE ASST. EXECUTIVE ENGINEER, HOMBEGOWDA NAGAR SUB-DUN, BBMP H.SIDDIAH ROAD, WILSON GARDEN, BANGALORE – 560 027. …PETITIONER (BY SMT. HEMALATA MAHISHI, ADVOCATE)
AND:
Digitally AND: signed by SOWMYA D 1. SMT. ASHA, Location: AGED ABOUT 41 YEARS, HIGH W/O G. SREENIVASA MURTHY, COURT OF D/O NARASASHETTY, KARNATAKA R/O NO. 189, 12TH CROSS, NAGENDRA BLOCK, BANASHANKARI III STAGE, BANGALORE - 560 050.
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MOTHER/NATURAL GUARDIAN PETITIONER NO.1 R/O SAME AS ABOVE.
…RESPONDENTS
(BY SMT. SONA VAKKUND, ADVOCATE) (R2 IS MINOR REP. BY R1)
THIS WRIT PETITION IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF CONSTITUTION OF INDIA, PRAYING TO QUASH THE ORDER ON I.A.2 PASSED BY THE COURT OF PRINCIPAL JUDGE, FAMILY COURT, AT BANGALORE ON 20.4.2018 O.S.NO.255/2014 [ANNEXURE-F], ETC.
THIS PETITION COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING IN ‘B’ GROUP THIS DAY, THE COURT MADE THE FOLLOWING:
ORDER
This writ petition is filed challenging the order dated 20.04.2019 passed by the Principal Judge, Family Court, Bengaluru, in O.S. No.255/2014.
The Respondents No.1 & 2 have filed a suit in O.S. No.255/2014 for maintenance of Rs.35,000/- p.m.. It is the case of the respondents herein that the petitioner is the husband of the 1st respondent and father of the 2nd
respondent and due to marital disputes, they have been leaving separately since from July 2003. On 04.08.2003, the petitioner has filed a petition seeking for divorce in MC No.128/2014 on the file of the Family Court at Mysuru on the grounds of desertion and adultery. The said petition was transferred to the Family Court at Bengaluru and renumbered as MC No.4260/2014. The said petition is pending for consideration. The respondents in OS No.255/2014 have filed an application in IA No.2 seeking for an interim maintenance. The said application was opposed by the petitioner by filing objections. The said application-IA No.2 was allowed-in-part by the Family Court at Bengaluru, vide order dated 31.01.2017, wherein it is ordered that the minor-Respondent No.2 is entitled for Rs.10,000/- p.m., towards interim maintenance from the date of filing application-IA No.2 fill disposal of the suit and Respondent No.1 is not entitled for interim maintenance till disposal of the suit. Being aggrieved by the said order dated 31.01.2017, Respondent No.1 has preferred a writ petition before this Court in Writ Petition
No.12499/2017 and this Court vide order dated 06.02.2018 has set aside the order passed by the Family Court and directed to re-consider the application filed by Respondent No.1. The Family Court after hearing the parties has passed an order dated 20.04.2018 and allowed the application filed by Plaintiff No.1/Respondent No.1 here in this petition, directing the petitioner to pay interim maintenance of Rs.10,000/- p.m. to Respondent No.1 from the date of application, during the pendency of the suit and also directed the petitioner to pay the Litigation Expenses of Rs.10,000/- to Respondent No.1. The petitioner aggrieved by the said order dated 20.04.2018 on IA No.2 in so far as Respondent No.1 concerned, has filed this writ petition.
petitioner was having net salary around Rs.31,500/-, the Family Court instead of awarding 25% of the net salary,
NC: 2024:KHC:3866 WP No. 24938 of 2018
has awarded Rs.10,000/- as interim maintenance to Respondent No.2, and as such, the said amount awarded by the Family Court is exorbitant. She further submits that the Family Court has committed error in awarding maintenance from the date of filing application. She also submits that the Family Court could have passed an order for payment of maintenance from the date of passing order and not from the date of filing application. She also submits that by virtue of order on IA No.2, the petitioner is paying a sum of Rs.10,000/- to Respondent No.2. Hence, on these grounds she prays to allow the writ petition.
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submits that the Family Court, based on the salary certificate of the petitioner has rightly awarded interim maintenance of Rs.10,000/- p.m, to Respondent No.2. She further submits that, the Family Court is justified in granting interim maintenance from the date of filing application. Hence, on these grounds, the learned counsel for the respondents pays to dismiss the writ petition.
The petitioner has filed a petition seeking for divorce before the Family Court at Mysuru in MC No.128/2014, which was transferred to the Family Court at Bengaluru and it is re-numbered as MC No.4260/2014. Further, the Respondents have filed a suit in OS No.255/2014 for
maintenance against the petitioner. In the said suit, the respondents have filed IA No.2 seeking for interim maintenance on the ground that Respondent No.1 is unable to maintain herself and minor child ie., Respondent No.2. It is further contended that the petitioner has not paid any maintenance to the respondents and hence, they have filed IA No.2 seeking for interim maintenance at Rs.35,000/- p.m. Admittedly, the petitioner is a Government Servant and he is drawing salary every month. Considering the income of the petitioner, the Family Court awarded Rs.10,000/- to Respondent No.2 and declined to award maintenance to Respondent No.1 vide order dated 31.01.2017. Being aggrieved by this order, Respondent No.1 has filed a writ petition in W.P. No.12499/2017. This Court vide order dated 06.02.2018 has set aside the order passed on IA No.2 in respect of Respondent No.1 and directed the Family Court to reconsider the application filed by Respondent No.1.
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of Kalyan Dey Chowdhury Vs. Rita Dey Chowdhury Nee Nandy in Civil Appeal No.5369/2017 disposed of
on 19.04.2017, which is reported in AIR 2017 SC
2383. Further, during pendeny of this writ petition, Respondent No.2 has attained majority and it is an admitted fact that the petitioner has stopped paying interim maintenance to Respondent No.2.
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Therefore, I do not find any grounds to interfere with the impugned order. Accordingly, the writ petition stands
dismissed .
Sd/JUDGE
KGR List No.: 1 Sl No.: 1
1 issue framed by the court
Whether the Family Court was justified in awarding interim maintenance of Rs.10,000 p.m. to the wife from the date of the application despite the husband's limited net salary.
Colour shows how this judgement treated each authority
Kalyan Dey Chowdhury Vs. Rita Dey Chowdhury Nee Nandy in Civil Appeal No.5369/2017 disposed of on 19.04.2017, reported in AIR 2017 SC 2383Relied on¶8
2 provisions across 2 enactments
G. Sreenivasa Murthy
Smt. Asha
Poornachandra Tejaswi
Ashok S. Kinagi
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
