Can minor children be denied maintenance only because wife is not entitled? MP High Court said No. And held that even if the wife is disqualified under Section 125(4) CrPC, the father’s legal and moral duty to maintain minor children continues.
INDORE: The Madhya Pradesh High Court has held that a husband’s legal duty to maintain his minor children continues even when the wife is found not entitled to maintenance under Section 125(4) CrPC.
The order was passed by Justice Jai Kumar Pillai while hearing a challenge against a Family Court order which had directed the husband to pay ₹10,000 per month to the wife and ₹5,000 each to their two children.
The husband argued that the wife was living separately without any sufficient reason and therefore could not claim maintenance. He relied on Section 125(4) CrPC, which bars maintenance to a wife if she refuses to live with her husband without sufficient cause.
The High Court examined the Family Court’s reasoning and found that mere lack of harmony with in-laws, or the husband giving attention to his parents and family members, cannot be treated as a valid legal ground for the wife to live separately and claim maintenance.
The Court observed:
“A lack of harmony with in-laws or a husband paying attention to his parents and family members cannot, under any circumstance, be construed as a justifiable or sufficient ground for a wife to leave the matrimonial home and subsequently claim maintenance.”
The Court also noted that earlier criminal proceedings had ended in acquittal and that the wife had failed to establish a legally sustainable reason for residing separately. Therefore, the wife’s maintenance of ₹10,000 per month was set aside.
However, the Court made a clear distinction between the wife’s claim and the children’s rights. It held that the children cannot suffer because of the dispute between the parents.
The Court observed:
“The disqualification of the wife does not legally or morally absolve the revisionist of his primary liability to maintain his minor children.”
Considering present economic conditions, the High Court increased the maintenance of the two children from ₹5,000 each to ₹7,500 each per month.
In simple words, the wife’s maintenance was denied under Section 125(4) CrPC, but the father was directed to pay ₹15,000 per month for both children.
EXPLANATORY TABLE: LAWS & SECTIONS INVOLVED
| Law / Section | Purpose | Court’s Observation In This Case |
| Section 125 CrPC | Provides maintenance to wife, children and parents who cannot maintain themselves. | The Court examined whether the wife was legally entitled to maintenance. |
| Section 125(4) CrPC | Wife is not entitled to maintenance if she lives separately without sufficient reason, lives in adultery, or parties live separately by mutual consent. | The Court held this provision barred the wife’s maintenance as she failed to prove sufficient reason to live separately. |
| Section 498A IPC | Punishes cruelty by husband or relatives. | The Court noted that the husband had already been acquitted, weakening the wife’s claim that cruelty justified her separate residence. |
| Section 34 IPC | Deals with acts done by several persons with common intention. | Mentioned because it formed part of the earlier criminal case. |
| Section 19(4), Family Courts Act, 1984 | Gives the High Court revisional jurisdiction over Family Court orders. | The revision petition challenging the maintenance order was filed under this provision. |
CASE DETAILS
- Case Title: Husband v. Wife and Others
- Case Number: Criminal Revision No. 1229 of 2022
- Court: High Court of Madhya Pradesh, Bench at Indore
- Judge (Bench): Hon’ble Shri Justice Jai Kumar Pillai
- Neutral Citation: 2026:MPHC-IND:18129
- Date Of Judgment: 08 July 2026
- Counsels:
- For Petitioner (Husband): Shri Nilesh Dave, Advocate
- For Respondents: Shri Neelesh Agrawal, Advocate
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Wife’s disqualification under Section 125(4) CrPC cannot become a weapon to deny maintenance to minor children.
- MP High Court protected the children’s rights, but refused to reward a wife who failed to prove sufficient reason for living separately.
- A husband caring for his parents is not cruelty, not neglect, and not a legal ground for wife’s separate maintenance.
- The Court set aside the wife’s ₹10,000 maintenance, but increased children’s support to ₹15,000 per month.
- Men can fight false or weak maintenance claims legally, but fatherhood remains a continuing responsibility before law.
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