The amount of maintenance awarded to a wife under Section 125 of the Cr. PC should be reasonable and should take into account the status of the husband and the wife, as well as the husband's income.

( 1 ) THIS revisional application has been preferred under section 401 read with section 482 of the Cr. PC challenging the order dated 13/4/2005 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Fast track Court-1, Krishnanagar in Criminal Motion No. 74 of 2004 whereby the learned Judge was pleased to modify the order dated 31/ 5/2004 passed by the learned Judicial Magistrate, Nadia in case no. 109 (IV) of 2003.

( 2 ) CASE of the petitioner is that she was married with the opposite party No. l on 09/2/2001 according to the Hindu Rites. But two months after the marriage, her husband and other in-laws started torturing her over the demand of dowry. As the said demand could not be satisfied by the petitioner's father, so the torture upon her was aggravated. Even the brother-in-law of the petitioner gave immoral proposal to her and as she protested, so she was further tortured by the husband and his relatives. Finally on 25/10/2002 the petitioner was mercilessly beaten by the husband and she was driven away from the said matrimonial house. Since then she took shelter in her father's house.

( 3 ) ON the initiative of the father of the petitioner, the matter was considered by the Sahayata Kendra of Santipur Police Station where it was settled that opposite party/husband would divorce the petitioner by paying Rs. 4,50,000. 00. However, the husband did not pay anything in terms of the said settlement.

( 4 ) THE petitioner filed a case under section 498a of the Indian Penal code against the husband and the same is still pending in the Court, the petitioner has further claimed that she has got no income of her own and as such, unable to maintain herself. As, inspite of sufficient income, the husband has failed to provide maintenance to the petitioner, so she filed a petition under section 125 of the Cr. PC claiming maintenance @ 5000/- per month for herself.

( 5 ) THAT husband contested the said case and denied all the allegations on the material points. However, the learned Magistrate, after considering the evidence of the parties and the materials placed before him, was pleased to allow the petitioner's prayer for maintenance to the extent of Rs. 4,500/- per month.

( 6 ) AS the husband was dissatisfied with the said order he preferred a revisional application before the learned Revisional Court, who, by his impugned order, was pleased to reduce the amount of maintenance to the extent of Rs. 1,500/- per month. Being aggrieved by the said order of the learned Revisional Court, this revisional application has been preferred by the wife/petitioner. According to the petitioner, learned revisional Court was not at all justified in reducing the amount of maintenance, as passed by the learned Magistrate in favour of the petitioner/wife. According to the petitioner, the learned Judge failed to appreciate the income of the husband while fixing the amount of maintenance. As, according to the petitioner, the order, as passed by the Revisional Court is improper, so this Court, in exercise of its inherent power, should interfere with the said order and restore the order, as passed by the learned Magistrate.

( 7 ) THE case has been contested by the opposite party/husband. According to the learned Advocate for the husband, the learned revisional Court was perfectly justified in reducing the amount of maintenance. According to him, it is the settled position of law that not more than 1/5th of the income can be allowed in favour of the wife towards her maintenance. Keeping this position in mind, it must be said that there was no illegality in the order, as passed by the learned revisional Court and, as such, said order should not be interfered with by this Court.

( 8 ) IT is the admitted position that the marriage in between the parties is not sputed. It is also undisputed that the petitioner/wife is now not staying in the matrimonial house. She has claimed that she was compelled to leave the matrimonial house due to the alleged