Punjab-Haryana High Court
Ravinder Kaur And Anr vs Surinder Singh on 2 December, 2014
Author: Ritu Bahri
Bench: Ritu Bahri
CRR(F)-159-2013 -1-
IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB & HARYANA
AT CHANDIGARH
Crl. Revision (F) No.159 of 2013
Date of decision : 02.12.2014
Smt.Ravinder Kaur & another ....Petitioners
versus
Surinder Singh ...Respondent
CORAM: HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE RITU BAHRI
Present: Mr. Sanjay Jain, Advocate, for the petitioners.
Mr. Ashish Rawal, Advocate, for the respondent.
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RITU BAHRI , J (Oral)
Vide order dated 26.07.2013, a direction has been given to the respondent-Surinder Singh to pay a maintenance of Rs.2,500/- per month to each of the petitioners i.e. Ravinder Kaur wife of Surinder Singh and Purujit minor son of Surinder Singh from the date of passing of the order (Annexure P-1).
Counsel for the petitioners is seeking modification of the impugned order.
Petitioner No.1-Ravinder Kaur was married to respondent- Surinder Singh on 11.02.2008. Out of this wedlock, Ravinder Kaur gave birth to a girl child and thereafter due to misunderstanding and harassment faced by her, she was separated on account of facing humiliation in the month of October, 2009. For calculation of maintenance, the trial Court while examining the evidence with regard to maintenance of wives and VINAY 2014.12.04 16:06 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document Punjab & Haryana High Court, Chandigarh CRR(F)-159-2013 -2- children under Section 125 Cr.P.C. has taken into consideration the fact that the respondent started filing his income tax return in the year 2006 Ex.PW3/A to PW3/E. He had obtained a loan from State Bank of India and making instalments of Rs.4,313/- per month. The respondent had tendered documents Ex.P-1 to P-7 for obtaining the said loan from the bank. Moreover, as per Annexure P-3, respondent owned a plot of worth Rs.10 lacs besides LIC policy of the value of Rs.1 lac and mutual fund unites worth Rs.50,000/-. The income has to be assessed between Rs.15,000/- and Rs.20,000/- per month and the respondent was directed to make a payment of Rs.2,500/- to each of the petitioners. Sub Clause 2 of Section 125 Cr.P.C. with regard to maintenance reads as under:-
"2[Provided further that the Magistrate may, during the pendency of the Proceeding regarding monthly allowance for the maintenance under this sub-section, order such person to make a monthly allowance for the interim maintenance of his wife or such child, father or mother, and the expenses of such proceeding which the Magistrate considers reasonable, and to pay the same to such person as the Magistrate may from time to time direct:
Provided also that an application for the monthly allowance for the interim maintenance and expenses for proceeding under the second proviso shall, as far as possible, be disposed of within sixty days from the date of the service of notice of the application to such person] Explanation. For the purposes of this Chapter.
(a) minor means a person who, under the provisions of the Indian Majority Act, 1975 (9 of 1875) is deemed not to have attained his majority;
(b) "Wife" includes a woman who has been divorced by, or has obtained a divorce from, her husband and has not remarried.
3[(2) Any Such allowance for the maintenance or VINAY 2014.12.04 16:06 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document Punjab & Haryana High Court, Chandigarh CRR(F)-159-2013 -3- interim maintenance and expenses for proceeding shall be payable from the date of the order, or, if so ordered, from the date of the application for maintenance or interim maintenance and expenses of proceeding, as the case may be.]"
The Hon'ble Supreme Court in 2008 (4) Civil Court Cases 213 (S.C.) in case Shail Kumari Devi & anr. Vs. Krishan Bhagwan Pathak @ Kishun B.Pathak has considered the manner in which a power under Section 125 is to be exercised by the Magistrate as under:-
"39. In Amarjit Kaur v. Sartaz Zingh, 1996 CriLJ 4476 (P&H), the High Court of Punjab & Haryana held that sub-section (2) of Section 125 does not require the Magistrate to record special reasons for granting maintenance from the date of application. What it says is that if the order is silent as to the date from which such maintenance is payable, it has to be paid from the date of the order. Where, however, the maintenance is to be paid from the date of the application itself, then there should be a specific order in that behalf by the Court. There is nothing in the statutory provision to hold that the Magistrate must record special reasons if he is to order that maintenance shall be payable from the date of application.
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47. We, therefore, hold that while deciding an application under Section 125 of the code, a Magistrate is required to record reasons for granting or refusing to grant maintenance to wives, children or parents. Such maintenance can be awarded from the date of the order, or, if so ordered, from the date of the application for maintenance, as the case may be. For awarding maintenance from the date of the application, express order is necessary. No special reasons, however, are required to be recorded by the Court. In our Judgment, no such requirement can be read in sub section (l) of Section 125 of the Code in absence of express provision to that effect."
In the facts of the present case, the petitioners had no source of income for maintenance. The income of her husband has been assessed VINAY 2014.12.04 16:06 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document Punjab & Haryana High Court, Chandigarh CRR(F)-159-2013 -4- keeping in view that the respondent is an income payee from the year 2006 and his income has been rightly assessed between Rs.15,000/- and Rs.20,000/- per month.
No special reasons are made out by the petitioners to modify the order to make the payment of maintenance from the date of application. Duration of litigation is not in the hands of the litigant. No ground is made out to modify the order.
Dismissed.
02.12.2014 (RITU BAHRI)
Vinay JUDGE
VINAY
2014.12.04 16:06
I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document Punjab & Haryana High Court, Chandigarh