INDEX

TITLE PAGE NO
INTRODUCTION 4

5
WHAT IS MAINTENANCE APPLICATION UNDER SECTION 125
GROUNDS TO CLAIM MAINTENANCE 5

WHAT SHOULD APPLICATION INCLUDE? 5-6

JURISDICTION 6

SAMPLE MAINTENANCE APPLICATION 7-9

SAMPLE INTERIM MAINTENANCE APPLICATION 10-11

CONCLUSION 12
BIBLIOGRAPHY
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 INTRODUCTION
Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is one of the most invoked and discussed
provisions of the code. This code provides that any person who has sufficient means to maintain
himself cannot deny the maintenance to the wife, children, and parents if they are not able to
maintain themselves. However, sometimes the husbands, against whom the order of maintenance
is passed may not be satisfied with the judgment passed by the lower court and therefore, they
should have a platform where they can put up their grievances against the order. Therefore they
have the right to file the revision application in the court of law as provided under Section 397 of
the Code. The scope of revision applications increased in recent times due to increasing
awareness and improved outlook of the judiciary towards providing justice to such parties as
well. Let’s look at the scope of the revision available against the order under Section 125 of the
Code Of Criminal Procedure.

Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code provides for the maintenance to the wife, child, and
parents. The court after the party has invoked Section 125 of the Code, may order the
respondent, that is the husband, to maintain the wife who is unable to maintain herself by
providing monthly maintenance to her. However, there is an exception in the provision. For the
purpose of providing maintenance to the wife, the husband has to be sufficient enough to support
his wife after the separation and at the same time, the wife must not be living in adultery or
living separately with her husband without any sufficient reasons. Even if they are living
separately in mutual consent, then also the wife will not be entitled to any sort of maintenance.
Whenever the judgment is passed in favor of the wife, the court has to make sure that the
husband has sufficient means to provide maintenance to the wife. The court also needs to make
sure that the wife after the separation does not have enough money to maintain herself.

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What is a maintenance application under section 125?

Maintenance law under section 125 of CrPC has been enacted as a measure of social justice to
provide financial assistance (maintenance) to wife, children and parents, so as to prevent them
from falling into destitution. A maintenance application made under this section is presented
before the Magistrate, provided at such monthly rate as the Magistrate deems fit. This further
provides an option of an interim application to be filed under its sub section 3 during the course
of proceeding.

This article attempts to explain various aspects pertaining to an application for maintenance
under section 125, in light of recent “Guidelines” framed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the
matter of Rajnesh v. Neha & Anr,1 further discussing upon jurisdiction, grounds and interim
application.

Grounds to claim maintenance

Following are the grounds to claim maintenance under Section 125 of CrPC:

 If she is divorced by her husband, or

 Obtained divorce from her husband, and
 She has not remarried, and

 She is not able to maintain herself.

What should an application under section 125 of CrPC include?

An application made under this section is predicated upon two conditions

Firstly, the fact that the respondent “neglects” to maintain his wife, who is unable to maintain
herself, accenting that the applicant is fully dependent on the respondent as herself has no source
of income. And,

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AIR 2021 SUPREME COURT 569, AIRONLINE 2020 SC 915

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Secondly, that the husband (respondent) has sufficient means to provide maintenance. This could
be underscored by enumerating the respondent’s source(s) of income, assets and that he has no
other liabilities if in case.

Further, following are the points that shall also be made in the application

That the applicant is legally married wife of the respondent: to claim maintenance from the
respondent it is pertinent to establish that the applicant and the respondent are/ were a married
couple, proof establishing the same shall be attached therein including marriage certificate,
wedding Card etc, while not to be adhered meticulously.

As held in Chanmuniya v. Virendra Kumar Singh Kushwaha2 strict evidence of marriage

should not be a pre-condition for maintenance, since the term ‘wife’ includes all such situations
where a man and woman have been living together as a husband and wife for a reasonable period
of time.

The cause of non-maintainability of the marriage shall also be provided, which encompasses
cruelty, Demand/torture of wife for dowry, Impotency of husband etc.

Jurisdiction

An application for maintenance will be lodged against any individual who is liable to pay in any
of the following Districts where;

 he inhabits,
 or where he or his wife inhabits,
 or where he last resided with his wife, or as the case may be, with the mother of the
illegitimate child.

2
SLP Petition (Civil) NO. 15071 OF 2009

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Points to be included in an Interim application

The interim application must include limited pleadings along with an affidavit of discloser
mandatorily. This application shall mainly attempt to highlight the fact that, in the absence of the
respondent’s assistance the applicant is on the verge of penury, and since the disposal of main
petition under section 125 CrPC is likely to take time, the applicant would suffer great hardship
in meeting their day-to-day expenses.

Sample Maintenance Application

PETITION BY WIFE UNDER SECTION 125, CRPC FOR MAINTENANCE

IN THE COURT OF CHIEF METROPOLITAN MAGISTRATE, ______

MAINTENANCE PETITION NO. ______

IN THE MATTER OF:

Xyz, age: ____, W/o Abc, D/o _____,

Residing at __________

………………………. Petitioner

Versus

Abc, age: ______, S/o ____________,

Residing at ____________

……………………Respondent

APPLICATION FOR MONTHLY MAINTENANCE ALLOWANCES FOR THE WIFE

UNDER SECTION 125 OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE CODE, 1973

The above name petitioner respectfully shewoth as under:

1.The Applicant is a legally married wife of the Respondent solemnized on _______ according
to Hindu rites, and custom. Both of whom cohabited and lived as husband and wife for 5 years at

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____________________. Attached herein under as Annexure 1 and 2 are the Certified copy of
the extract from the concerned register and a copy of Wedding card.

2.That after initial few months of marriage the Respondent led a life of drunkenness and habitual
lewdness. The Respondent is a man of unusual temperament and constantly lost all sense of
decorum and used abusive language.

3.That the Applicant was subjected to cruelty at the hands of respondent without any
provocations whatsoever, this made the petitioners life miserable by constant abuse and immense
torture mentally and physically.

4.That additionally the Respondent stopped maintaining and fulfilling basic demand of the
Applicant including house hold expense. Ultimately the acts of Respondent leaving here with no
other option, and compelled to leave here matrimonial house on _________as mention above to
her paternal house.

5.The Petitioner is in midst of a severe financial crisis and has become totally bankrupt, unable to
maintain herself and her parents. As the Applicant doesn’t have any source of income neither
does possess any technical qualification to be employed.

6.That the Applicant along with his elderly parents have been subsisting on meagre pension
amount of 5,000 of his farther, who is chronically ill having recurring medication expenses. The
Applicant is in midst of a severe financial crisis and has become totally bankrupt, unable to
provide herself nor her parents, and their survival is at stake. Further details of assets and
liabilities of the Applicant are enlisted in the Affidavit of discloser attached herein below marked
as Encloser A.

7.That the Respondent is financially sound having multiple sources of income primarily earning
a handsome amount of 1,00,000 from his telecommunication business and additionally from
other sources. Having enough resources, the Respondent has yet overlooked his responsibility to
provide for his lawfully wedded wife.

8.That the above relation between the parties have deteriorated to an extent that there is no
possibility of compromise between them.

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9. It is, therefore, prayed that the Hon’ble Court may graciously be pleased:

a. To direct the said Respondent to pay a sum of ___________per month to the said Petitioner
as Monthly maintenance, or at such rate as this Hon’ble court may deem fit;

b. Pending the hearing and final disposal of this petition, the Respondent be directed to pay Rs.
10,000/- towards maintenance of the said Petitioner from the date of application, as instant
interim relief;

c. to direct the respondent to also pay the said amount of _________in lump sum towards the
costs of this proceeding, so as to pay the professional fees of the lawyer.

d. To pass such other and further reliefs as this Hon’ble Court may deem fit and proper.

VERIFICATION

I, Xyz, wife of abc, aged __ years, Indian Inhabitant, Occupation – Unemployed, residing at
______________, do solemnly affirm and declare that whatever is stated in the foregoing
petition is true to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Petitioner

Solemnly affirmed at _______

On this date ______________

Identified by ________.

Advocate for the Petitioner

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 Sample interim maintenance application

APPLICATION FOR INTERIM MAINTENANCE UNDER SECTION 125 (3) CrPC

In the Court of Metropolitan Magistrate, ___________

IN THE MATTER OF:

Xyz, age: ____, W/o Abc, D/o _____,

Residing at __________

………………………. Petitioner

Versus

Abc, age: ______, S/o ____________,

Residing at ____________

……………………Respondent

Subject: Application under section 125 (3) of the code of Criminal Procedure with the
prayer to grant interim maintenance during the pendency of the main petition

The above name petitioner respectfully shewoth as under:

That the petitioner has lodged a petition under section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure for
the grant of maintenance in addition to the current application before this learned court.

That the grounds enlisted in the main petition may kindly be read as part and parcel of the
present application, as they have not been reproduced in order to avoid repetition.

That there is a prima facie case in favour of the petitioners and against the respondent based on
the grounds set forth in the main petition. And, if interim maintenance is not granted the
Applicant would face substantial difficulty in meeting their day-to-day expenditures, as already
mentioned that the Applicant has become wholly dependent on her father’s meagre pension.

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That the Applicant having no independent source of income nor does she posses any technical
qualification to be employed while the Respondent has sufficient source of income has not even
cared to offer a single pie to the Applicant for her maintenance, as such the Respondent has
breached the obligatory marital duties and obligations to maintain the petitioners.

It is, therefore, most respectfully prayed that the application be granted and that the Respondent
be ordered to pay the Applicant an amount of Rs_______ /- as an interim maintenance from the
date of filing of the application till its decision on the merits.

The respondent be also directed to pay litigation expenses of the present petition to the
petitioners.

Applicant.

Through Counsel.

(_____________)

Advocate.

VERIFICATION

I, Xyz, wife of abc, aged __ years, Indian Inhabitant, Occupation – Unemployed, residing at
______________, do solemnly affirm and declare that whatever is stated in the foregoing
petition is true to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Petitioner

Solemnly affirmed at _______

On this date ______________

Identified by ________.

Advocate for the Applicant.

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 Conclusion
The object of the concerned section is not to award punishment but to provide social justice,
hence the content of such an application shall primarily focus on emphasizing the state of the
applicant and their need, as specified in the aforesaid guidelines. These guidelines would ensure
that the process of granting maintenance is carried out in a streamline manner, it would assist the
concerned court in adjudicating the matter, and deciding the quantum of maintenance. It is
commendable that the Hon’ble Supreme Court considered the vastly varied demographic
structure of the country while formulating the Affidavit of Disclosure.

Although Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure protects the right of the wife, and the
parents to get the equitable amount of maintenance from the husband or their children
respectively, there should not be any misuse of such a provision. Nowadays, the scope of
revision against the order passed under Section 125 has increased, and the higher courts are
increasingly accepting the revision applications under Section 397 for providing appropriate
reliefs to the opposite party. There is no set rule which the courts have been following in
allowing or rejecting the revision application, it all depends on the facts and circumstances of a
certain case. Sometimes the wife, even after the separation, has enough means to maintain
herself. Some High Courts had rejected the revision application filed by the husbands because
even after their ex-wives had means to maintain themselves, they still were required to give them
the maintenance. However, in the above-mentioned case laws, the High Courts have approved
the revision application of the husbands because the wives could maintain themselves. Therefore
the court decides it based on circumstances prevailing at that time. Hence, these precedents have
increased the scope of the revision application against the order passed under Section 125 of
CrPC. Although, the author believes that before invoking any such provisions, the parties should
solve the matters among themselves.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

1) – BOOKS:
 THE CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE,1973

2) – WEB LINKS :

 https://indiankanoon.org/
 https://blog.ipleaders.in/
 https://legalvidhiya.com/

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