Judicial Analysis Court Copy Headnote Facts Arguments Court observation

2025 Supreme(SC) 673

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
SUDHANSHU DHULIA, AHSANUDDIN AMANULLAH, JJ.
Shahjahan – Appellant
Versus
The State of Uttar Pradesh & Anr. – Respondents
R1: The State Of Uttar Pradesh
R2: Sri Gaffar Khan
Criminal Appeal No. 2112 of 2025 [@ Special Leave Petition (Criminal) No. 10430 of 2018]
Decided on : 04-02-2025

Advocates appeared:
For the Petitioner(s): Mr. Sushil Kumar Dubey, Adv. Mr. Rameshwar Prasad Goyal, AOR
For the Respondent(s): Mr. A.K.Misra. A.G., U.P., Sr. Adv. (NP) Mr. Arup Banerjee, AOR Mr. Amitabh Poddar, Adv. Mr. Priyanshu Raj, Adv. Mr. Harshita Raghuvanshi., Adv. Mr. Rajiv Agnihotri, Adv.

IMPORTANT POINTS
(1) ‘Court of Kazi’, ‘Court of (Darul Kaja) Kajiyat’, ‘Sharia Court’ etcetera have no recognition in law – Any declaration/decision by such bodies, by whatever name labelled, is not binding on anyone and is unenforceable by resort to any coercive measure.
(2) Maintenance should be reckoned as awarded from date of filing of application.

Headnote:
(A) Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 – Section 125 – Maintenance – Award of maintenance to children and denial of maintenance to appellant-wife on the ground that appellant is living separately from her husband without sufficient reason – Family Court could not have presumed that a second marriage for both parties would necessarily entail no dowry demand – Very basis/reasoning for rejecting appellant’s claim for maintenance appears to be ex-facie unsustainable – Impugned Order of High Court has merely noted findings returned by Family Court with approval – Maintenance could not have been denied to appellant-wife under prevailing circumstances. (Paras 14, 15 and 16)
(B) Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 – Section 125 – Award of maintenance – Section 125(2) of Code empowers Court to award maintenance from date of order but same has to be justified in background of attendant facts and circumstances and should not cause unnecessary hardship to applicant – Section 125 of Code is a beneficial piece of legislation which has been enacted to protect wife and children from destitution and vagrancy – In usual course, it would not be appropriate to disadvantage applicant for delay in disposal of application by judicial system – Maintenance should be reckoned as awarded from date of filing of application – Respondent directed to pay Rs.4,000/- per month as maintenance to appellant, from date of filing of maintenance petition before Family Court – Maintenance awarded to children will also be payable from date of filing of maintenance petition before Family Court – Order of Family Court as well as Impugned Order set aside. (Paras 17, 18 and 19)
(C) Mohammedan Law – ‘Court of Kazi’, ‘Court of (Darul Kaja) Kajiyat’, ‘Sharia Court’ etcetera have no recognition in law – Any declaration/decision by such bodies, by whatever name labelled, is not binding on anyone and is unenforceable by resort to any coercive measure – Only way such declaration/decision can withstand scrutiny in eye of law could be when affected parties accept such declaration/decision by acting thereon or accepting it and when such action does not conflict with any other law – Even then, such declaration/decision, at best, would only be valid inter-se parties that choose to act upon/accept the same, and not a third-party. (Para 23)
Facts of the case:
Present appeal is directed against the Final Judgment and Order dated 03.08.2018 in Criminal Revision No.2829/2010, passed by the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, whereby revision petition filed by appellant-wife was dismissed and Order dated 23.04.2010 in Petition No.335 of 2008 passed by Principal Judge, Family Court, Jhansi, not awarding any maintenance to appellant-wife, was upheld.
Findings of Court:
Appellant and respondent no.2 had agreed to a settlement before District Legal Services Authority, Jhansi as per its Secretary’s letter dated 11.07.2024. Although letter suggests that prescribed settlement format was also signed by both parties, Special Lok Adalat held in this Court on 31.07.2024 referred the matter back to Court recording ‘settlement seems not possible’.
Result : Appeal disposed of.

JUDGMENT :

AHSANUDDIN AMANULLAH. J.

Leave granted.

2. The present appeal is directed against the Final Judgment and Order dated 03.08.2018 in Criminal Revision No.2829/2010 (hereinafter referred to as the 'Impugned Order')¹[2018 SCC OnLine All 7101 : (2018) 6 All LJ 55] passed by the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad (hereinafter referred to as the 'High Court'), whereby the revision petition filed by the appellant-wife was dismissed and the Order dated 23.04.2010 in Petition No.335 of 2008 passed by the Principal Judge, Family Court, Jhansi (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Family Court’) not awarding any maintenance to the appellant-wife, was upheld.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND:

3. The marriage of the appellant-wife was solemnized with the respondent no. 2-husband on 24.09.2002 according to Islamic customs. This was the second marriage of both. From their wedlock, the appellant gave birth to two children, namely daughter Aatika (aged about 21 years presently) and son Muzammil (aged about 16 years presently). In 2005, respondent no.2 filed ‘Divorce Suit No.325 of 2005’²[The usage of the apostrophe is deliberate; we will advert to this in the latter part of the Judgment.] against the appellant in the ‘Court of Kazi’³[Ibid.], Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, which came to be dismissed in terms of the compromise dated 22.11.2005 entered into between the two parties.

4. The appellant alleged that respondent no.2 used to beat her demanding dowry and turned her out of the matrimonial home along with her children in May, 2008. On 16.09.2008, respondent no.2 filed ‘Suit No.221 of 2008’⁴[Ibid.] in the ‘Court of (Darul Kaja) Kajiyat’⁵[Ibid.], Bhopal seeking divorce. Soon thereafter, on 13.10.2008, the appellant filed Suit No.335/2008 under Section 125⁶[‘125. Order for maintenance of wives, children and parents.—(1) If any person having sufficient means neglects or refuses to maintain—

(a) his wife, unable to maintain herself, or

(b) his legitimate or illegitimate minor child, whether married or not, unable to maintain itself, or

(c) his legitimate or illegitimate child (not being a married daughter) who has attained majority, where such child is, by reason of any physical or mental abnormality or injury unable to maintain itself, or

(d) his father or mother, unable to maintain himself or herself,

a Magistrate of the first class may, upon proof of such neglect or refusal, order such person to make a monthly allowance for the maintenance of his wife or such child, father or mother, at such monthly rate, as such Magistrate thinks fit, and to pay the same to such person as the Magistrate may from time to time direct:

Provided that the Magistrate may order the father of a minor female child referred to in clause (b) to make such allowance, until she attains her majority, if the Magistrate is satisfied that the husband of such minor female child, if married, is not possessed of sufficient means:

Provided further that the Magistrate may, during the pendency of the proceeding regarding monthly allowance for the maintenance under this sub-section, order such person to make a monthly allowance for the interim maintenance of his wife or such child, father or mother, and the expenses of such proceeding which the Magistrate considers reasonable, and to pay the same to such person as the Magistrate may from time to time direct:

Provided also that an application for the monthly allowance for the interim maintenance and expenses for proceeding under the second proviso shall, as far as possible, be disposed of within sixty days from the date of the service of notice of the application to such person.

Explanation.—For the purposes of this Chapter,—

(a) “minor” means a person who, under the provisions of the Indian Majority Act, 1875 (9 of 1875), is deemed not to have attained his majority;

(b) “wife” includes a woman who has been divorced by, or has obtained a divorce from, her husband and has not remarried.

(2) Any such allowance for the maintenance or interim maintenance and expense