Accurate financial disclosure is mandatory for determining interim maintenance in divorce proceedings, requiring both parties to submit Affidavits of Disclosure of Assets and Liabilities.

UDGMENT :

Satyen Vaidya, J.

1. The petitioner has invoked supervisory jurisdiction of this Court under Article 227 of the Constitution of India against order dated 02.08.2023 passed by learned Additional Principal Judge-II, Family Court, Una, District Una, H.P. in case No. 205/2023 whereby the application of respondent under Section 24 of the HINDU MARRIAGE ACT has been granted.

2. Petitioner has filed a petition for dissolution of marriage by decree of divorce against respondent, which is pending adjudication before learned Additional Principal Judge-II, Family Court, Una. It is alleged by the petitioner that his marriage with respondent, that had taken place on 16.01.2020, could not be consummated and the respondent has been alleged to be responsible therefor. As averred in the petition for divorce, the petitioner had submitted an application dated 2.11.2020 to Secretary, DLSA, Una for counselling of the parties and respondent in particular but on the same day, respondent ha d left the matrimonial home forever and since then has been residing in the house of her parents.

3. During the pendency of petition for divorce, respondent filed an application under Section 24 of the HINDU MARRIAGE ACT for grant of maintenance pendente lite and litigation charges. Petitioner contested the application, however, the Family Court granted the application vide impugned order dated 02.08.2023 and directed the petitioner to pay maintenance at the rate of Rs.10,000/- per month from the date of filing of petition and also to pay Rs.25,000/- towards litigation charges.

4. Aggrieved against the aforesaid order dated 02.08.2023, the petitioner has filed the instant petition primarily on the ground that the respondent is employed in a bank and she is earning almost the same amount as petitioner, who also is an employee of the bank. It has also been contended that the petitioner was always willing to maintain cordial relations with the respondent, but he was forced to seek decree of divorce on account of serious lapses of respondent in maintaining the matrimonial relations. As per petitioner, he has much m ore liabilities to discharge than the respondent and for such reason more value can be added to the earnings of the respondent.

5. Conversely, the respondent has her own version according to which, her liabilities are higher than that of petitioner. As a counter, the petitioner has been charged for matrimonial wrongs against respondent.

6. I have heard learned counsel for the parties and have also gone through the records of the case carefully.

7. In Rajnesh vs. Neha and another (2021) 2 SCC 324, the Hon’ble Supreme Court has issued the guidelines as under:

“63. At present, the issue of interim maintenance is decided on the basis of pleadings, where some amount of guess-work or rough estimation takes place, so as to make a prima facie assessment of the amount to be awarded. It is often seen that both parties submit scanty material, do not disclose the correct details, and suppress vital information, which makes it difficult for the Family Courts to make an objective assessment for grant of interim maintenance. While there is a tendency on the part of the wife to exaggerate her needs, there is a corresponding tendency by the husband to conceal his actual income. It has therefore become necessary to lay down a procedure to streamline the proceedings, since a dependant wife, who has no other source of income, has to take recourse to borrowings from her parents / relatives during the interregnum to sustain herself and the minor children, till she begins receiving interim maintenance.

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