Maintenance amount based on husband's income and wife's refusal to live with him is justifiable under section 125 Cr.P.C.

1. The petitioner, who is working as a Junior Engineer with the Railways, feels aggrieved of the order dated 30.06.2017 passed in Original Maintenance Case No. 82 of 2015 by which in a petition filed under section 125 Cr.P.C by his wife he has been directed to pay Rs.15,000/- per month to his wife.

2. At the outset, Mrs. Bharti Kumari, the learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner is aggrieved of the quantum fixed by the learned court.

3. In the proceeding of Original Maintenance Case No. 82 of 2015 which was initiated on a petition filed by the petitioner’s wife under section 125 Cr.P.C claiming maintenance of Rs.20,000/- per month, the applicant has levelled an allegation against the petitioner that he has contracted second marriage with one Nitu Kumari. His wife has examined herself as P.W.1 and she has asserted that the petitioner is earning Rs.50,000/- per month. The petitioner has also examined himself and asserted that it was his wife who refused to live with him and in the criminal case filed by her he has been acquitted of the criminal charges. Stand taken by him is that his wife is earning Rs.15,000 to 20,000/- per month from the coaching classes and he has to look after his mother and younger unmarried sister.

4. The marriage between the parties is not disputed by the petitioner. Registration of a criminal case by his wife against the petitioner is a justifiable reason in law for her not to stay in the company of the petitioner. It is a matter of record that to corroborate his stand that his wife is earning Rs.15,000 to 20,000/- from tuition, the petitioner has not examined the persons to whom his wife is rendering tuition. The salary slip produced by the petitioner would disclose that his gross salary is Rs.45168/- and after deductions of Rs.9239/- he is receiving net amount of Rs.35927/-. By now it is widely accepted that the maintenance amount can be one third of the total income of the husband. In this case the gross income of the husband is Rs.45168/- and while so, amount of maintenance of Rs.15,000/- is a just award of maintenance by the court. Moreover, in exercise of the powers under the revisional jurisdiction, detail examination of the evidence led in the proceeding of Original Maintenance Case No. 82 of 2015 is not permissible [refer, “Sheonandan Paswan Vs. State of Bihar” reported in (1987) 1 SCC 228], and it is also well accepted that the provision under section 125 Cr.P.C is a social and beneficial legislation.

5. In the above facts, finding no infirmity in the impugned order dated 30.06.2017, Criminal Revision No. 1758 of 2017 is dismissed.