Unless the order of maintenance under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is modified, cancelled, or set aside, the husband is obligated to pay maintenance to the wife.

JUDGMENT

Madhumati Mitra, J. - This is an application under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure filed by the petitioner husband praying for setting aside the order impugned dated June 24, 2019 passed by the Learned Additional sessions Judge, Second Court, Barrackpore in Criminal Revision No.371 of 2017. By the impugned order the Learned Judge affirmed the order dated August 17, 2017 passed by the Learned Judicial Magistrate, 5th Court, Barrackpore in Misc. Execution case No.11, 2017 arising out of Misc. case No.194 of 2012.

2. The relevant facts which are essential for disposal of the present Revisional Application may be narrated as under:

3. Opposite party wife approached before the Learned Magistrate under Section 125 of the Code of criminal Procedure praying for maintenance against her husband/present petitioner. That application was registered as miscellaneous application being No.194 of 2012. On 01.08.2015 the Learned Magistrate disposed of that application and directed the husband to pay maintenance to the wife to the tune of Rs.7000/- (Rupees Seven Thousand) per month. Thereafter opposite party husband verbally approached the wife to reside together and accordingly they started to reside together since 20.09.2015 at the residence of the husband. Husband paid maintenance for the months of October, 2015 to the wife. Thereafter the husband stopped payment of maintenance since November 2015 and started torturing the petitioner/wife. In spite of mental and physical torture the petitioner/wife stayed in her matrimonial home with the expectation that good sense of her husband would prevail. On 25.01.2017 at night the husband and in-laws drove the wife out from her matrimonial home. Thereafter with the intervention of police petitioner/wife got access to her matrimonial home. On 31.01.2017 petitioner/wife was called by police at the police station and she was informed that her mother in-law lodged a complaint against her. Thereafter the husband and in-laws left the residence one after another keeping the petitioner alone in the residence. Petitioner was compelled to leave her matrimonial home on 06.01.2017 and started to reside separately.

4. On 13.02.2017 petitioner/wife filed execution case for recovery of arrears of maintenance for the period from November, 2015 to January 2017 amounting to Rs.1,05,000/-(Rupees One Lakh Five Thousand).

5. The maintainability of said execution proceeding was challenged by the present petitioner/husband on the ground that during the period from November, 2015 to January 2017 present opposite party/wife stayed in her matrimonial home with her husband and during that period she was well maintained by her husband. Petitioner/husband also stated in the said application that the claim for arrears of maintenance had been filed beyond the period of limitation.

6. Learned Magistrate rejected the prayer of the opposite party/husband and observed the application for execution of the order of maintenance was maintainable.

7. Husband preferred one revisional application challenging the order passed by the Magistrate. The Revisional Application was dismissed by Learned Sessions Judge and the order passed by the Learned Magistrate was affirmed.

8. Admittedly the wife got an order of maintenance on the basis of her prayer under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Present petitioner/husband was directed to pay maintenance to the wife to the tune of Rs.7000/- per month.

9. From the submissions made by the Learned Counsel for the parties it appears that the opposite party/wife stayed at her matrimonial home for the period from November, 2015 to January, 2017.

10. The contention of the husband is that the wife is not entitled to get any amount of maintenance for that period as during that period she was maintained by her husband.

11. Admittedly the order of maintenance passed under Section 125 of the code of criminal Procedure is in force. Until the said original order for maintenance is mod