Wife Cannot Claim Interim Maintenance for Period She Was Employed and Earning: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has modified an interim-maintenance order after holding that a spouse who was employed and earning could not claim Section 24 maintenance for that same period.

Background

The Family Court had directed the husband to pay ₹5,000 per month from January 2021, the date on which the wife moved her maintenance application in pending matrimonial proceedings.

Legal issue and Court's reasoning

The High Court found that she was employed when the application was filed and continued working until June 2024. It therefore shifted the starting date of the maintenance liability to July 1, 2024, when she became unemployed.

The Bench separately examined the husband's challenge to the Family Court's assessment of his income at ₹22,000 per month. He relied on a salary certificate from his father's photostat shop claiming a lower income.

Result and practical consequence

The Court found the certificate insufficient without supporting material and noted that the applicable minimum-wage figures did not justify interference with the Family Court's assessment.

The order was modified only to exclude the period during which the wife was earning; the monthly maintenance amount otherwise remained undisturbed.