Father Can't Escape Duty To Maintain Children Citing Loan Repayments, EMI Commitments: Gujarat High Court

The Gujarat High Court has held that payment of EMI or loan repayment by the father cannot reduce his liability to maintain his children, adding that he has to provide for expenses towards food, clothing, residence, medical needs of the children and even tuition expenses. In doing so the court directed the father to maintain his three minor triplets from his first marriage, along with his...

Husband Can't Seek To Strike Off Wife's Defence In Matrimonial Proceedings After Failing To Pay Litigation Expenses: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that a husband cannot seek to strike off his wife's defence in matrimonial proceedings for delay in filing a written statement after himself failing to comply with the Family Court's direction to pay litigation expenses.A division bench of Justices Vivek Chaudhary and Rajneesh Kumar Gupta dismissed an appeal filed by a husband challenging a Family Court order...

“Earning Capacity Cannot Be Ignored At Ad-Interim Stage”: Calcutta HC Sets Aside Maintenance Granted To Wife Without Financial Disclosure

The Calcutta High Court has clarified that a spouse's earning capacity cannot be ignored even at the ad-interim stage, setting aside a maintenance order granted to a qualified doctor without examining her financial status in light of the disclosure norms mandated in Rajnesh v. Neha.Justice Uday Kumar was hearing a criminal revisional application filed by a husband challenging an...

Courts Least Equipped To Infer 'Psychiatric Disorder' From Marital Incidents Without Expert Medical Evidence: Telangana High Court

Quashing a family court order restraining the wife from going near her husband during pendency of divorce proceedings on the ground of her alleged "psychiatric disorder", the Telangana High Court remarked that the courts are least equipped to arrive at such a finding in absence of any expert medical evidence.It said that thwarting free access of one individual to another, that too...

'Unprecedented': Telangana High Court Quashes Restraint Order Against Wife, Says Filing Criminal Cases Against Husband Don't Justify Curbs

The Telangana High Court quashed a family court order restraining a wife from going anywhere near her husband including his house and his working, during pendency of divorce proceedings. Terming the restraint order as "unprecedented" the court observed that merely because the wife had filed criminal cases against her husband would not justify such a severe consequence.It said that thwarting...

S.125 CrPC | Objective Of Provision Defeated As Exploitation Of Women Continues Due To Legal Loopholes: Rajasthan High Court

The Rajasthan High Court, while rejecting a maintenance application under Section 125 CrPC, filed by a woman whose marriage was void due to the subsistence of her and her husband's earlier marriage, described the situation as “unfortunate” and expressed sympathy for the petitioner.The bench of Justice Anoop Kumar Dhand highlighted the legal loopholes that defeated the objective of...

Maintenance Can't Be Demanded From Man If DNA Test Shows He's Not Child's Father : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has held that when a DNA test conclusively establishes that a man is not the biological father of a child, he cannot be directed to pay maintenance, even though the child was born during the subsistence of marriage.A Bench of Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh dismissed an appeal filed by a mother challenging the denial of maintenance to her...

Duty To Maintain Spouse Primary; Loan Repayments For Asset Creation No Ground To Reduce Maintenance Liability: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court recently observed that deductions arising out of financial commitments such as loan repayments, particularly where they contribute towards creation of assets, cannot be treated on par with necessary expenditure so as to substantially reduce the liability of maintenance. The Court emphasized that the obligation to maintain a spouse is a primary duty and cannot be subordinated...

Supreme Court Directs Husband's Employer To Deposit Monthly Maintenance To Wife's Account After Deducting From His Salary

The Supreme Court recently directed the employer of a man to deduct ₹25,000 every month from his salary and transfer the amount directly to the bank account of his estranged wife towards maintenance for her and their minor daughter.A bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice KV Viswanathan passed the direction after noting that the husband had failed to comply with earlier orders and had...

Supreme Court Stays Muslim Husband's Talaq-E-Hasan Divorce To Illiterate Wife; Couple To Remain Married Until Talaq Proven Valid

The Supreme Court today stayed the operation of a talaq-e-hasan divorce given by a Muslim husband to his illiterate wife, noting that there were allegations of his obtaining her signatures on a blank paper and he did not appear to defend them.A bench of CJI Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi passed the order. When apprehensions were expressed by Senior Advocate MR Shamshad (appearing...

Can Muslim Woman Invoke Khula & Terminate Marriage Without Husband's Consent? Supreme Court To Consider

The Supreme Court recently appointed Senior Advocate Shoeb Alam as amicus curiae in an appeal against a Kerala High Court judgment upholding a Muslim woman's right to pronounce khula and terminate marriage without the husband's consent.A bench of Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justice K. Vinod Chandran listed the case for hearing on April 22, 2026, noting that the case involves a question of...

Welfare Of Child Paramount But Not Sole Consideration In Custody Disputes: Supreme Court

Emphasising that child custody decisions cannot rest on welfare alone, the Supreme Court held that courts must also take into account a range of other relevant factors, including the conduct of parents, their financial capacity, standard of living, and the comfort and education of the children.Setting aside a Jammu and Kashmir High Court judgment that restored the custody of two minor children...