Whether enhancement of maintenance after mutual consent divorce is available to a wife and her children. Parties have obtained decree of divorce by mutual consent and one of the conditions for mutual consent divorce is that the husband will pay 500 each monthly maintenance to the children and me. Husband is regularly paying maintenance but now the wife wants to enhance the maintenance amount from 500 to 2000 to each child as well as rs 5000 for wife. Can this order be modified under section 127 cr.pc.
Asked from: Uttar Pradesh
After divorce, you still retain the status of a wife. This status entitles you to seek an increase in maintenance. Alimony is not just a legal matter but a social responsibility for an ex-husband. Hence, you have the right to seek an enhancement in maintenance even after a divorce by mutual consent.
It is a well-established legal principle that a woman does not lose her status as a wife after divorce. In the case of Rohtash Singh v. Ramendri (Smt.) (2000) 3 SCC 180, the Supreme Court held that according to explanation (b) to Sub-section (1) of Section 125 of the Code, a woman who has been divorced by her husband through a decree from the Family Court under the Hindu Marriage Act maintains the status of a wife for the specific purpose of seeking maintenance from her former husband.
The Hon’ble Supreme Court further emphasised in Vanamala v. H.M. Ranganatha Bhatta, (1995) 5 SCC 299, that a wife who obtains a divorce by mutual consent cannot be denied maintenance under Section 125(4) of the Code.
If a divorced wife is unable to maintain herself and has not remarried, she is entitled to claim maintenance allowance. Often, after divorce, a woman may become destitute. If she is unable to sustain herself and remains unmarried, her former husband continues to bear a statutory duty and obligation to provide maintenance.
It is evident that you have the right to claim maintenance from your ex-husband even after a divorce by mutual consent. Since Section 125 of the CrPC is applicable after divorce, you can approach the family court under Section 127 of the CrPC for the enhancement of maintenance, especially considering the rising cost of living making the current maintenance amount insufficient.
You should file an application under Section 127 of the CrPC, providing evidence of your child’s monthly expenditures and, if available, evidence of your income to demonstrate the hardship you face in supporting your child. The court will then consider your application and may order an enhancement in the monthly allowance accordingly. For more legal help please visit Kanoon India.
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