The husband is a businessman. He deals in various capacities. The husband has refuted the claim shown in his Internet profile. He has shown the names of his father, mother and brother instead in several of these Undertakings in various capacities.
5. He claims that he had a dealership contract with A.K. Engineering Services which was terminated on December 31, 2008. He has produced certificate of registration of 1984 issued on 30.12.1994 in the name of his father as proprietor of A.K. Engineering Services. The husband, therefore, had a contract with his father. That contract is shown to be terminated after the wife sued for interim maintenance. A termination by way of a letter on a Stamp Paper of Rs. 100/- simpliciter is produced. The learned Judge has naturally not accepted the termination of the contract of the husband in his own father s Undertaking.
6. It is common knowledge that husbands who desire to fail and neglect to maintain their wives in consonance with their martial obligation and statutory duty to maintain them create evidence of termination of their services or contracts so soon as the marriage breaks down, parties separate or the wife makes her claim for maintenance. Production of a mere letter or order of termination of service or resignation from service cannot be relied upon or considered by the Court in the absence of proof of execution of such a document and genuineness and bona fides of its creator. There is no reason for an otherwise qualified and physically capable husband to have to be dismissed or terminated from service or to resign his job or discontinue his career. In this case, it is not surprising that the firm from which his dealership contract is terminated is shown, under an unregistered partnership deed (the kind of which that can be fabricated at any time) to belong essentially to his father and brother and the place of business of the partnership is shown to belong to his mother as shall be seen presently.
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
APPELLATE SIDE
Anup Avinash Varadpande
v/s.
Anusha Anup Varadpande
Writ Petition No.5338 of 2009
CORAM : SMT.ROSHAN DALVI, J.
DATED :
11th January, 2010
1.Heard both sides.
2.Rule. Rule is made returnable forthwith.
a
matrimonial
3.Upon
dispute
for
interim
maintenance
prosecuted in the Family Court, the Petitioner-husband
has impugned the order of the Principal Judge, Family
Court, Pune, dated 31st March 2009, Exhibit-H to the
Petition.
The order for maintenance is granted upon
the Application for interim maintenance made by the
Respondent-wife for grant of Rs.60,000/- per month and
expenses of Rs.10,000/- for maintenance.
The wife has
essentially provided the details about the income of
the husband from his Internet profile. His Internet
profile shows him to be dealing in various capacities
in various Firms.
The learned Judge has considered the
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position
of
the
husband
in
4
Companies
being
A.K.
Engineering Services, M/s.Mountain Movers, M/s.Ashwini
Market and M/s.Saikrupa Distributors. Whereas the wife
that
the
husband
owns
each
of
these
claims
Undertakings, the husband claims that he owns none.
The is
husband
shown
as
contract
person
for
M/s.Saikrupa Distributors. He shows as Head of Sales of
A.K. Engineering Services. He shows the distribution of
with
one
Ashwini
earth moving machines by him and he is shown concerned
Marketing,
who
is
the
authorised
ig
dealer of Cummins Diesel Sales & Services.
capacities.
4.The husband is a businessman.
He deals in various
The husband has refuted the claim shown in
He has shown the names of his
his Internet profile.
father, mother and brother instead in several of these
Undertakings in various capacities.
5.He claims that he had a dealership contract with A.K.
Engineering Services which was terminated on December
31, 2008. He has produced certificate of registration
of 1984 issued on 30.12.1994 in the name of his father
as
proprietor
of
A.K.
Engineering
Services.
The
husband, therefore, had a contract with his father.
That contract is shown to be terminated after the wife
sued for interim maintenance.
A termination by way of
a letter on a Stamp Paper of Rs.100/- simpliciter is
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produced. The learned Judge has naturally not accepted
the termination of the contract of the husband in his
own father s Undertaking.
6.It is common knowledge that husbands who desire to fail
and neglect to maintain their wives in consonance with
their martial obligation and statutory duty to maintain
them create evidence of termination of their services
contracts
parties
so
soon
separate
or
as
the
the
marriage
or
wife
makes
breaks
her
down,
claim
for
termination
of
ig
maintenance. Production of a mere letter or order of
service
or
resignation
from
service
cannot be relied upon or considered by the Court in the
absence of proof of execution of such a document and
genuineness and bona fides of its creator.
reason
for
an
otherwise
qualified
and
There is no
physically
capable husband to have to be dismissed or terminated
from service or to resign his job or discontinue his
In this case, it is not surprising that the
career.
firm from which his dealership contract is terminated
is shown, under an unregistered partnership deed (the
kind of which that can be fabricated at any time) to
belong essentially to his father and brother and the
place of business of the partnership is shown to belong
to his mother as shall be seen presently.
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7.Mr.Warunjikar argued that the Internet profiles need
taken
income.
as
a
guide
to
conclude
the
husband s
be
He is merely shown against the products of the
various Undertakings.
himself.
He owns none of the products
not
The only document showing his true financial
position
is
wrongly
the
income
rejected
by
tax
the
returns
learned
which
Judge
has
and
been
hence
8.Relating
to
interference by this Court is required.
various
vehicles
shown
in
the
Internet
ig
profile against his own photographs, the husband has
produced certain RTO registration of the vehicles.
One
The
other
is shown to stand in the name of his mother and father.
vehicle
is
in
the
name
of
M/s.Mountain
Movers. An unregistered Deed of Partnership on a stamp
paper
of
Rs.100/-
dated
27.11.1998
of
the
Firm
M/s.Mountain Movers at Gulbarga, shows the husband s
father
Avinash
partners.
and
his
brother
Mohan
as
the
main
If that is to be accepted, the Internet
profile is intendedly deceptive and even dishonestly
made.
9.The
learned
internet profile.
Judge
has accepted
The husband has
the
relied
upon
his
income-tax returns showing an annual income of about
Rs.2 Lakhs which is rightly
rejected
as
not
representing his true financial status and income by
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5
the learned Judge in view of his association with as
many as 4 Companies. The husband has not produced the
same before this Court.
10.The husband has produced before this Court the income-
tax returns of his mother Ashwini instead.
shown to receive profits from
She is also
Ashwini Marketing as
well as rent from A.K. Engineering Services, which form
a part of the Internet profile of the husband himself.
It is, therefore, seen that these are family concerns
the
interested.
husband
is
legitimately
ig
where
financially
The income-tax returns of the mother shows
the loan taken by her from the husband who is her son.
Placing reliance upon such family Undertakings and upon
rejection of the husband s claim that he has washed his
hands
off
each
of
his
Undertakings,
including
dealership agreement, contrary to the information given
out by him in his Internet profile, the learned Judge
rejected
has
his
contention
but
granted
interim
maintenance of only Rs.15,000/-.
11.The husband lives in a bungalow, has membership of at
least one Club.
He lives in affluent circumstances
which fact is considered by the learned Judge.
bungalow is a family property.
The
Though the husband has
not produced the documents of purchase by the mother,
he claims, upon the record of rights, that his mother
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learned
income
that
Judge
the
has
wife
also
earns
considered
from
her
some
service
paltry
as
12.The
is the owner.
a
primary school teacher in Symbiosis Primary school on
temporary basis, earning
reflected as the
in
Rs.5,000/-
salary
slip
per
month
shown
by
as
her.
Mr.Warunjikar has contended that it is erroneous to
consider the net income of the wife after deduction of
her provident fund, etc., and that the learned Judge
secured
this
job
in
ig
should have considered her gross income.
2008.
The
parties
The wife
married
on
14.10.2006. They admittedly separated in March 2007.
The wife is seen to have taken the temporary job out of
It may be mentioned
a constraint to earn her living.
that a paltry income earned by the wife, specially
after separation or upon the neglect of the husband to
maintain the wife, cannot be termed as her
income . It
is merely an amount received upon the constraint to
serve to make ends meet. Such amount can hardly be
considered for determining sufficiency of income.
13.What is contemplated to be
income
in any provision
for grant of interim maintenance, be that under Section
24 of the Hindu Marriage Act, Section 18 of the Hindu
Adoptions and Maintenance Act, Section 20(1)(d) of the
Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005,
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7
under Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code, or
any other similar legislation is that the wife, of her
own volition, and upon her educational or professional
of
service
derives
or
her
profession
own
or
qualifications, pursues a settled career either by way
business
independent,
in
separate
which she
income or
otherwise earns income by way of investments, rents,
profits or the like from any settled source of income.
The sufficiency or otherwise of such income is required
to be seen and calculated to grant or reject her claim
ig
of maintenance.
14.It wold be unjust and unreasonable to disallow a woman
her claim to maintenance when it is seen that she did
pursue
a
career
not
or
be
in
service
during
the
subsistence and continuation of her marriage and had
taken
up
a
job
or
service
only
when
the
parties
separated.
15.This phenomenon can be appreciated from another angle
also.
A wife, who is in service is entitled and often
required, to give up her service after marriage.
She
is equally entitled to give up her service after the
parties separate.
She is entitled to make a claim for
maintenance thereafter. Of course, the bona fides of
such a claim would have to be seen from the facts of
each case.
In normal circumstances, upon such a claim
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8
being made, the husband would be obliged and bound to
In such a case, her maintenance amount
maintain her.
would be determined based only upon the income of her
husband.
16.Hence if a wife is constrained to earn in a service
taken up by her to make ends meet or to survive with
dignity pending the actual receipt of maintenance from
husband
after
following
the
usually
her
labourious
legal process, in our judicial system wrought with the
delays,
legitimate means
of
cannot
earning
be
her
penalised
modest
for
and
the
honest
Earnings of a primary school teacher who
livelihood.
she
ig
consummate
has been neglected and failed to be maintained by a
husband
cannot
even
businessman
be
justified
to
be
deducted from an amount deemed fit and reasonable to be
paid
to
her
as
maintenance
from
the
income
of
the
husband.
17.Nevertheless, the learned Judge has considered her net
income of Rs.5,000/- from her salary certificate and
granted the amount of maintenance
of only Rs.15,000/-
per month.
18.The
order
rejected.
is
not
perverse.
The
Writ
Petition
is
Rule is discharged accordingly.
(SMT.ROSHAN DALVI, J.)
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ig
9
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