Interim maintenance under Section 125 of the Cr.P.C. requires thorough financial assessment of both parties, with specific affidavits of assets and liabilities being crucial for the determination of an appropriate amount.

ORDER :

Bibek Chaudhuri, J.

1. The petitioner is the husband of Opposite Party No. 1. Their marriage was solemnized on 14^th of December, 2015. The Opposite Party No. 1 filed an application under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, praying for maintenance allowance, alleging, inter alia, that after solemnization of her marriage with the petitioner, it was consummated and in the wedlock, she gave birth to a male child. It is alleged that after marriage, the petitioner and his relatives demanded Rs. 10 Lakhs as dowry, which she denied. It is further alleged that at the time of marriage father of the Opposite Party had given Rs. 15 lakshs in cash and Rs. 3 lakhs in the account of the brother of the petitioner on 19.05.2015. Again, on 23.05.2015, Rs. 50,000/- and Rs. 49,500/- in the account as well as Rs. 5,00,000/- was given to the father of the petitioner. It is also alleged that in the night of 09.02.2019, they have attempted to immolate her but fortunately her brother Rahul and Lal Babu Paswan reached her matrimonial house on motrorcycle and hearing her screaming voice all the accused persons had fled away and thereafter she was admitted in the clinic for treatment. It is further stated that the petitioner has been pursuing his MD course after MBBS in IGIMS, Patna from where he is getting Rs. 70,000/- in terms of stipend and in addition to this, he is earning Rs. 30,000/-. It is further stated by the Opposite Party No. 2 that as she has no source of income and she is a burden on her parents, she is entitled for her expenditure from her husband/petitioner. Therefore, she demanded a sum of Rs. 30,000/- as maintenance per month and Rs. 15,000/- as interim maintenance till the disposal of the application under Section 125 of the Cr.P.C.

2. By an order, dated 2^nd of February, 2023, the learned Principal Judge, Family Court, Sitamarhi passed an order of ad interim maintenance to be paid by the petitioner in favour of the Opposite Party No. 2 at the rate of Rs. 20,000/- per month within 10^th day of each succeeding month and to pay the due interim maintenance from March, 2022 to February, 2023 for 12 months @ 20,000/-, i.e., Rs. 2,40,000/- within a period of three months from the date of the order, which would be deposited in the bank account of the applicant, till the final disposal of the application under Section 125 of the Cr.P.C.

3. The said order is under challenge in the instant revision.

4. The learned Advocate appearing on behalf of Opposite Party, at the outset, submits that Criminal Revision is not maintainable against an order of ad interim maintenance.

5. In support of his contention, he refers to an unreported decision of this Court of a learned Single Judge, passed in Criminal Revision No. 623 of 2011 on 29^th of November, 2013.

6. The learned Advocate appearing on behalf of the Opposite Party also refers to an unreported decision in Criminal Miscellaneous No. 22165 of 2016, decided on 16^th of September, 2016, passed by the Division Bench of this Court, holding as hereunder: -

“In view of the discussions made above, we are of the view that the only remedy, available to the petitioner, is to make an application under Article 227 of the Constitution of India before this Court, if he is so aggrieved by the order of the interim maintenance, dated 10^th of February, 2016, passed by the Principal Judge, Family Court, Munger.”

7. Therefore, the Division Bench held that the application under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, challenging an order of interim maintenance is not maintainable before the High Court.

8. In view