IMPORTANT POINT
The judgment emphasizes the duty to prevent destitution and vagrancy, the need for evidence to establish income, and the balancing of interests and financial capacity in determining maintenance under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

JUDGMENT :

Since the judgment and order dated 17/04/2023 in CR.MA No.1273 of 2015 passed by the learned Family Court, Ahmedabad has given rise to the present revision applications, both the revisions are heard and decided together. With the consent of learned Advocates appearing for the respective parties, the main matter/s are taken up for hearing.

2. CR.RA No.1629 of 2023 is filed by wife – Mauna Paresh Shastri and CR.RA no.1159 of 2023 is filed by the husband – Paresh Rameshchandra Shastri assailing impugned judgment and order. For the sake of brevity and convenience, the parties are referred to as per their original status before the learned Court below i.e. wife and husband.

3. The wife filed maintenance application being CR.MA No.1273 of 2015 under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (for short ‘the Code’) before the learned Family Court wherein by an order dated 27/04/2023, the learned Family Court was pleased to partly allow the said application and directed the husband to pay Rs.10,000/- per month towards maintenance from 21/05/2015 i.e. from the date of filing of the petition and ordered to pay cost of Rs.2,000/-. This order is called to challenge by both the parties.

4. The short facts of the case are that husband initially married Ms. Ushaben Vaidh, who passed away in a road accident. Respondent no. 3 is their daughter, born out of the first wedding. The husband- Paresh Rameshchandra Shastri got married with wife- Mauna Paresh Shastri on 11.02.1996. Since the time of marriage, on trivial issues husband and wife engaged in fight inter se. In the year 1996, they used to live in the house of the husband’s family at their Paldi residence; but later on they moved to another house at Satellite area where both husband and wife used to live separately along with daughter. Previously, in the year 2008, the wife filed an FIR under Section 498A of IPC against the husband and his relatives, which was settled amicably and whereby the wife had stated that she had filed the said case in a haste.

4.1 Thereafter, the wife filed Criminal Misc. Application no. 120 of 2015 before the Learned Additional Metropolitan Magistrate Court, Ahmedabad under the provisions of Domestic Violence Act which came to be rejected. Appeal against the said order also came to be rejected. It is submitted that revision is pending against judgment and order passed by learned Court below.

4.2 The wife filed maintenance application being Criminal Misc. Application No.1273 of 2015 under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure seeking maintenance stating inter alia that they married on 11/02/1996 at Ahmedabad; the husband was earlier married to Ushaben R. Valdhva who died in a road accident and out of said wedlock the husband had one daughter. It is stated that soon after the marriage the husband was not keeping good behaviour with wife, used to ill-treat and subjected to mental and physical cruelty. It is stated that the husband used to beat and physically and mentally abuse the wife. It is submitted that thereafter the wife came to know that husband is having extra-marital affairs with the sister of the first wife who is unmarried and when the wife questioned the husband about the said affairs, he got violent and started abusing and beating the wife. It is stated therein that the wife till now thought of not filing present petition but thinking that wisdom will prevail and the husband will change his attitude but on each and every occasion the husband used to behave, abnormally with the wife in her matrimonial house. It is stated that the husband is a wholesale supplier of veterinary medicine, (other work-renting sale of godown, investing in stock market) and is earning a good income and therefore, it is required that necessary order be passed and husband be directed to make the arrangements for residence of the wife as per the status of the husband and also the husband be directed to pay the maintenance and alimony to the wife as per the status of