The Supreme Court has reinstated the Family Court’s interim maintenance award for two minor daughters, holding that the husband’s liability cannot be reduced merely because the wife earns a professional salary. The judgment underscores that maintenance under Section 125 CrPC is a shared parental responsibility and that a lower court’s assessment will not be disturbed without cogent reasons.
Background & Facts
The Dispute
The appellants - Sujata Kumari (wife) and her two minor daughters (aged about 9 and 8) - sought interim maintenance from the respondent, Rahul Kumar (husband), under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.
Key Facts
- Marriage solemnised on 18 June 2006.
- Two daughters were born during the marriage; a son was also born but died shortly after birth.
- Marital discord led the wife and daughters to leave the matrimonial home.
- In 2022, the wife filed Case No.355/2022 under Section 125 CrPC, seeking maintenance of Rs.2,50,000 per month.
- The wife, an MBBS D.G.O. gynaecologist, earns Rs.1,50,000 per month at a hospital in Greater Noida.
- The husband, an MBBS, M.D. paediatrician, earns Rs.2,00,000 per month as a consultant and also owns a nursing home.
- Family Court interim order dated 21 October 2024 awarded Rs.30,000 per month to each daughter (total Rs.60,000) and declined interim maintenance to the wife.
- The husband filed a revision petition before the High Court.
- High Court impugned order dated 9 February 2026 (Criminal Revision No.10 of 2025) reduced the award to Rs.15,000 per month for each daughter.
Procedural History
- 2022: Petition under Section 125 CrPC (Case No.355/2022) filed before Family Court.
- 21 Oct 2024: Family Court interim maintenance order - Rs.30,000 each daughter.
- 2025: Husband files revision petition before Allahabad High Court.
- 9 Feb 2026: High Court order reduces interim maintenance to Rs.15,000 each daughter.
- 20 Aug 2026: Supreme Court delivers judgment, setting aside High Court order and restoring Family Court order.
Relief Sought
The appellants sought restoration of the Family Court’s interim maintenance award of Rs.30,000 per month for each daughter and payment of any arrears by the husband within a specified period.
The Legal Issue
Whether the High Court was justified in reducing the interim maintenance awarded by the Family Court under Section 125 CrPC, given the wife’s professional earnings and the husband’s income.
Arguments Presented
For the Appellants
- The High Court erred in halving the father’s liability merely because the wife earns a salary.
- The Family Court’s assessment of Rs.30,000 per daughter was reasonable in view of the children’s educational and upbringing expenses.
- The husband’s monthly income of Rs.2,00,000 is sufficient to meet the original quantum; the reduction lacks a factual basis.
- The High Court provided no substantive justification for altering the Family Court’s award.
For the Respondent
- Maintenance is a joint parental obligation; the wife’s earnings should be considered to determine each parent’s share.
- The High Court correctly concluded that the father should not bear the entire burden and that Rs.15,000 per daughter is adequate.
- The Family Court’s award was excessive and not proportionate to the husband’s earning capacity.
The Court's Analysis
The Supreme Court examined the purpose of interim maintenance under Section 125 CrPC, emphasizing that it is intended to protect a party from immediate inability to meet daily needs and to ensure the welfare of minor children. The Court observed that:
"The obligation to maintain the children is shared by both parents, but it cannot be divided by arithmetic alone. The daughters live with the appellant-wife, who looks after their daily needs while also working. Such care cannot be measured in money, but it is a real contribution, and often the greater one."
The Court noted that the High Court’s reduction was unsupported by any detailed assessment of the children’s needs or the husband’s capacity. It reiterated that the Family Court had considered income affidavits and expense particulars before arriving at the Rs.30,000 figure per daughter, finding the award "just and reasonable". The Supreme Court held that the High Court’s reasoning was insufficient to disturb the lower court’s determination and that the wife’s earnings, by themselves, do not justify halving the father’s liability.
Furthermore, the Court stressed that the pending main petition under Section 125 CrPC remains untouched; the present proceedings concern only interim relief. Consequently, there was no ground to interfere with the quantum fixed by the Family Court.
The Verdict
The Supreme Court set aside the High Court order dated 9 February 2026 and restored the Family Court’s interim maintenance order dated 21 October 2024, awarding Rs.30,000 per month to each daughter (total Rs.60,000 per month). The husband must pay any arrears, if any, within three months from the date of the judgment. The main Section 125 application will be decided on its merits without influence from the interim order. The appeal is allowed.
What This Means For Similar Cases
Earnings of the Custodial Parent Are Not a Stand-Alone Reason to Reduce Liability
- Courts will not automatically halve a father’s maintenance obligation simply because the mother earns a professional salary.
- The focus remains on the children’s needs and the total earning capacity of both parents.
Deference to Family Court Assessments
- A Family Court’s detailed evaluation of income, expenses, and child-care requirements will be upheld unless a clear error or lack of reasoning is demonstrated.
- High Courts must provide substantive justification when modifying interim maintenance awards.
Interim Maintenance Remains Separate from Final Determination
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Interim orders under Section 125 CrPC are governed by the principle of preventing immediate hardship, not by the final quantum of maintenance.
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Parties should continue to pursue the main petition for a comprehensive settlement of maintenance.
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Practitioners should ensure that any application for modification of interim maintenance is supported by fresh evidence and a reasoned argument, not merely the income of the custodial parent.
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When drafting petitions, emphasize the children’s actual expenses and the shared responsibility of both parents rather than relying on the other parent’s earnings alone.
