Court holds no interim maintenance due while wife was employed; Rs. 5,000/month maintenance fixed from July 2024 onwards under Section 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955
In a significant judgment delivered on 16th September 2026, the Delhi High Court (Division Bench comprising Justices Vivek Chaudhary and Renu Bhatnagar) modified the interim maintenance order in the matrimonial dispute between Mr. Brijesh Rajkumar Suiri and Mrs. Navita Brijesh Suri. The Court allowed an appeal filed by the husband against the Family Court's order granting interim maintenance from the date of filing the application (8 January 2021), holding that the wife was not entitled to maintenance during the period she was gainfully employed.
The case arose out of a petition under Section 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 filed by the wife seeking interim maintenance pendente lite during the pendency of divorce proceedings. The Family Court had directed the husband to pay Rs. 5,000 per month from 8 January 2021 onwards. The husband challenged this order contending that the wife was employed in a Bata showroom from March 2020 till June 2024 earning Rs. 7,000 per month and hence, was not entitled to maintenance during this period.
The High Court thoroughly examined the material on record, including the pleadings and affidavits. The Court acknowledged the well-settled principle that interim maintenance proceedings under Section 24 are summary in nature and involve a degree of guesswork in assessing incomes, especially when parties conceal actual earnings. Citing precedents such as Jasbir Kaur Sehgal v. District Judge Dehradun and Rajnesh v. Neha, the Court reiterated the factors to be considered in assessing maintenance including status, income, reasonable wants, liabilities, and standard of living.
While upholding the Family Court's assessment of the husband's income at Rs. 22,000 per month as reasonable, the Court found merit in the husband's submission that the wife was employed until June 2024 and thus not entitled to maintenance during her employment. The Court observed that the wife's own affidavit admitted her employment and earning of Rs. 7,000 per month from the Bata showroom till June 2024.
Accordingly, the Court modified the interim maintenance order to direct the husband to pay Rs. 5,000 per month maintenance only from 1 July 2024, i.e., from the date the wife became unemployed. The other terms of the Family Court's order were upheld. The judgment highlights the importance of truthful income disclosure and careful assessment of employment status in maintenance proceedings, ensuring that interim relief is granted only when justified.
This judgment underscores the judiciary's balanced approach in matrimonial maintenance cases, protecting financially weaker spouses while preventing unjust enrichment where the spouse is self-sufficient.
Bottom Line:
Interim maintenance under Section 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 - Assessment of income by courts involves guesswork when actual income is concealed - Maintenance not granted during the period when the respondent was employed.
Statutory provision(s):
Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 Section 24; Family Courts Act, 1984 Section 19(1); Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 Section 28; Guardians and Wards Act, 1890 Section 25; Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 Section 12.
Mr. Brijesh Rajkumar Suiri v. Mrs. Navita Brijesh Suri, (Delhi)(DB) : Law Finder Doc Id # 2979766
