Judicial Analysis Court Copy Headnote Facts Arguments Court observation

2021 Supreme(SC) 881

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
Dr. D.Y. Chandrachud, M.R. Shah, JJ.
Chandrashekar - Appellant
Versus
Swapnil & Anr. - Respondents
Criminal Appeal Nos. 265-266 of 2021(Arising Out of SLP (Crl) Nos. 3537-3538 of 2020)
Decided On : 04-03-2021

Advocates appeared:
Mr. Chinmay Deshpande, Adv, Mr. Anirudh Sanganeria, Aor, for the Appellant; Mr. Gaurav Agrawal, Aor, for the Respondent.

Points Of Law : Interest of justice to envisage that maintenance at reduced rate of rupees ten thousand per month will be provided by appellant to first Respondent until he completes his first degree course following upon high-school board examinations.

Headnote:
Family Court Act 1984 - Section 19 – FIR - Delay condo nation – Divorce - First respondent who was born is residing with his mother second respondent - Family Court by its order directed the appellant to pay maintenance at rate per month to first respondent - High Court by its judgment dismissed instituted by the appellant under provisions of Section 19 Family Court Act and declined to entertain revision.
Finding Of The Court : Court are conscious fact that Court are extending period for maintenance in the terms indicated above - However in issuing this direction court have borne in mind two significant aspects: firstly maintenance payable by appellant has been reduced from rupees twenty thousand per month to rupees ten thousand per month and secondly past arrears have been capped at amount of lacs which has already been paid – Hence exercising our jurisdiction Article 142 of Constitution court are inclined to pass an order in the interest of justice to envisage that maintenance at the reduced rate of rupees ten thousand per month will be provided by the appellant to first Respondent until he completes his first degree course following upon the high-school board examinations.
Result : Appeal disposed

ORDER

1. Leave granted.

2. The issue in the present appeals pertains to the grant of maintenance to the fiRs.t respondent, who is the minor son of the appellant and the second respondent. The marriage between the appellant and the second respondent took place on 10 May 1999. The appellant sought a decree of divorce in 2010. The Principal Senior Civil Judge, Bagalkot passed a decree for divorce on 16 June 2015. The fiRs.t respondent, who was born on 25 March 2004 is residing with his mother, the second respondent. The Family Court by its order dated 8 September 2017 directed the appellant to pay maintenance at the rate of Rs. 20,000 per month to the fiRs.t respondent. The High Court, by its judgment dated 13 December 2019 dismissed RPFC No 100145/2017 instituted by the appellant under the provisions of Section 19(4) of the Family Court Act 1984 and declined to entertain the revision.

3. On 29 July 2020, while entertaining the Special Leave Petition under Article 136 of the Constitution, this Court passed the following order:

"1. Delay condoned.

2. The petitioner is employed as a FiRs.t Division Assistant in the Department of Health and Family Welfare of the Government of Karnataka. Mr Chinmay Deshpande appearing on behalf of the petitioner states that at present the gross salary of the petitioner is Rs. 45,000 and that after deductions, he is in receipt of a net salary between Rs. 20,000 to Rs. 25,000. Hence, it has been submitted that the direction to pay maintenance of Rs. 20,000 per month to his son would be impossible of compliance.

3. In order to test the bona fides of the petitioner, we direct that the petitioner shall presently pay over to his son towards maintenance, an amount of Rs. 10,000 per month computed with effect from 2 March 2016 (the date of the filing of the application for maintenance). The aforesaid amount shall be paid over on or before 10 September 2020.

4. Mr Deshpande states that until date the petitioner has paid an amount of Rs. 6.80 lakhs towards maintenance. We direct that the amount which has been paid over shall be adjusted against the amount which is due and payable in terms of the above directions.

5. The petitioner shall also file his salary slips as on 31 March 2016, 31 March 2017, 31 March 2018, 31 March 2019 and for the period between January 2020 to July 2020 on affidavit before this Court. He shall also explain the nature of deductions which are being made from his salary.

6 List the Special Leave Petition after eight weeks."

4. In puRs.uance of the order passed by this Court, the appellant has filed IA No 96711/2020 making a disclosure of his salary slips for the months of March 2016, March 2017, March 2018, March 2019 and for the period between January and July 2020. The recent salary slips of the appellant indicate thathe has a gross salary of Rs. 45,529. The deductions from the gross salary are on account of (i) Professional tax (ii) Employees Group Insurance Scheme (iii) LIC policy (iv) General Provident Fund (v) Karnataka Government Insurance Department deduction and (vi) House Rent Allowance. In addition, it appeaRs. that the appellant had obtained a loan for which recoveries at the rate of Rs. 9325 per month are being made from his salary towards a total outstanding of Rs. 3.26 lakhs. Net of deductions, the salary which is payable to the appellant works out to Rs. 20,979 per month.

5. It is not in dispute that inclusive of the amounts which have been paid over in puRs.uance of the order dated 29 July 2020 passed by this Court, the appellant has paid a total sum of Rs. 6.64 lakhs towards maintenance to the fiRs.t respondent.

6. The principal submission which has been urged on behalf of the appellant by the learned counsel, Mr Chinmay Deshpande is that the appellant is employed as a FiRs.t Division Assistant in the Department of Health and Family Welfare of the Government of Karnataka; his salary being what has been referred to above, the payment of an amount of Rs. 20,000 by way of

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