Alimony & child maintenance
Mrunmai Deshpande
(Querist) 10 May 2012
This query is : Resolved
I am a person of 42 years of age and have a son and wife. Together, we stay with my parents in a flat owned (not inherited ) by then. Before pregnancy my wife was working and earning around Rs8000/-pm. I am currently suffering from paralysis of both the legs and writer’s cramp and so unable to work and earn. We are already a burden to my parents though they never complain about it and meet all the expenses of our joint family. My both the parents are retired and meet the expenses of our joint family through the pension they get and interest on Bank FDs. As I am unable to work and because of my disability my wife has deserted me and currently staying with her parents. My son is also with her. Her parents are well off. She is trying for a job there. She wants divorce from me. I am under tremendous pressure since I can’t earn. How can I give her alimony and child maintenance? Please help me in suggesting a suitable solution!
ajay sethi
(Expert) 10 May 2012
if you are suffering from paralyisi and your wife is earning you wont have to pay alimony
V R SHROFF
(Expert) 10 May 2012
You need not give alimony
SAINATH DEVALLA
(Expert) 10 May 2012
Dear Deshpande,
Extremely sorry to know about your physical disability.The almighty is sometimes harsh,but we have to accept it courage and valour.The act of your wife has to be condemed by everyone for even distancing your son.You need not pay any alimony if your wife insists on divorce.
Go through the below mentioned for your information:
Factors In Qualifying For Alimony
The judge making the decisions on the divorce proceedings has the biggest impact on who qualifies for alimony. The judge will first review the length of the marriage to determine if either party qualifies. .
The judge will also examine the income of each person. Generally, if the income levels are highly unequal, that lends more support for the lower-income spouse to receive alimony. Judges generally wish for each person to continue with the standard of living they enjoyed while married, so if one person's income is high while the other's is low (such as for a stay-at-home wife or a disabled husband), alimony is more likely to be awarded. The judge will also look at the reasonable expectation that both spouses have for employment, that is, could a lower- or no-income spouse get a job, and at what income? Lack of training or education may factor into this, as would health reasons.
Child custody can also affect alimony; the person with custody of any children may not be able to obtain the highest-paying jobs due to work hours or other conditions. Plus, not every divorce will result in alimony payments-it all depends on whether one spouse can meet her financial needs without help from the other.
SAINATH DEVALLA
(Expert) 10 May 2012
Go through this Supreme Court verdict:
Supreme Court of India: ‘No alimony for woman who desert husband’
New Delhi, Nov 18
In an observation with far-reaching implications, the Supreme Court has said that a woman who deserted her husband and the matrimonial home and refused to return despite repeated requests was not entitled to maintenance.
Upholding a decision of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, a bench headed by Justice V S Sirpurkar said the law of the land did not allow maintenance in cases where the wife deserted her husband, children and the matrimonial home.
In the case before the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Poonam, who was married to Mahender Kumar of Jind on January 23, 1992, left her matrimonial home on March 18, 1998, alleging harassment and dowry demands. She also left her children.
Poonam later moved the family court, seeking divorce on grounds of cruelty. But Mahender Kumar filed an application before the court on February 20, 2002, praying for restoration of conjugal rights under the Hindu Marriage Act.
She did not respond to the application, and Kumar was granted ex parte decree as it was construed that Poonam would not return to her matrimonial home.
Fresh appeal
Two years later, Poonam approached the family court again, seeking divorce — on the ground that she was living separately — and demanding maintenance.
Though the court granted her divorce, her appeal for maintenance was turned down.
The Supreme Court bench said: “You left the matrimonial home on your own, and now you want maintenance. Is this the law of the country? What is the justification for your staying separately?”
No ill-treatment
When the case reached the Supreme Court, Poonam challenged the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s decision, seeking maintenance of Rs 4,000 per month from Mahender.
The high court judgment said she had failed to prove that she was ill-treated by her former husband.
Additionally, the court observed: “Failure of the petitioner-wife to justify her decision to stay away from the respondent-husband and two kids shows that she had left society of the respondent on her own accord.”
ANOTHER VERDICT:
Woman to pay alimony to husband
It’s a verdict that has shocked Delhi. A woman supporting four children on a monthly income of less than Rs 10,000 went to court to get a divorce and alimony.
Instead, this woman has been ordered to pay her husband a monthly alimony.
On her salary of Rs 9000 a month, Puja supports her children and runs a small home in Najafgarh in outer Delhi.
Now, she has to pay her former husband Rs 500 as monthly maintenance.
“I haven’t been able to pay my children’s school fee for three years. They may be thrown out. I have also had to mortgage this house. I don’t know how I will make ends meet. This is injustice,” said Puja Vijani, Petitioner.
After 20 years of marriage that Puja calls physically abusive, she filed for divorce a year back. She even asked for alimony hoping that whatever the court grants would help the family.
Instead, her husband convinced the court with medical certificates that he needed treatment and that he was without any livelihood. He convinced that he needed financial help more than his wife.
It’s an order that has taken many by surprise. A woman being asked to pay her husband alimony is not something that has happened many times in the past and whether it will now set a trend remains to be seen.
However, many feel this order is punitive in nature for a woman who has already faced harassment and victimization.
“It’s a shocking judgment. We’ve seen in so many such cases whenever it comes to paying maintenance, husbands become unemployed and go broke. Legally, it is permissible for a husband to be paid maintenance by his wife if he’s unable to support himself but these cases are extremely rare,” said Pinky Anand, Supreme Court Advocate.
Many feel the order should be challenged as it will send out a dangerous message.
“If this case sets a precedent, several women will face more torture and harassment than before. The woman in such a case is a victim. She leaves her home only when the torture becomes unbearable. If she is going to be punished further in this manner, life for her will become very difficult,” said Girija Vyas, Chairperson, NCW.
Puja wants to now appeal against the order and take her fight for justice to the High Court.
Shonee Kapoor
(Expert) 10 May 2012
I agree with experts, no alimony would need to be paid by you.
Regards,
Shonee Kapoor
harassed.by.498a@gmail.com
