Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 – s.125 – Maintenance – Appellant no.1-wife separated from her first husband by way of an MoU executed between them – Appellant no.1 married the respondent – Marriage declared null and void – Respondent and Appellant no.1 got re-married – However, differences arose between them, Appellant no.1 sought maintenance from the respondent – Awarded by Family Court – High Court set aside the maintenance – Challenge to:
Held: Respondent was fully aware of the first marriage of the Appellant No.1 and knowingly entered into a marriage with Appellant No. 1 not once, but twice – The MoU of separation between the Appellant No.1 and her first husband though not a legal decree of divorce, shows that the parties have dissolved their ties, they have been living separately and Appellant No.1 is not deriving maintenance from her first husband – Therefore, barring the absence of a legal decree, Appellant No.1 is de facto separated from her first husband and is not deriving any rights and entitlements as a consequence of that marriage – Maintenance cannot be denied to Appellant No.1 – Maintenance award granted by the Family Court restored. [Paras 17, 19] Interpretation of Statutes – Social welfare provisions – Interpretation of. [Para 18]
Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 – s.125 – Maintenance – Objective – Discussed. [Para 11]
As published in the Supreme Court Reports, Supreme Court of India. Headnotes prepared by: Divya Pandey. Text from the Indian Supreme Court Judgments open data set (Dattam Labs), CC BY 4.0.
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