The Delhi High court in its recent judgment held that the maintenance provided to the wife cannot be treated as a bounty. The question arose before the Court was whether the maintenance should be awarded at the date of application or at the date of the order.
In the present case, the petitioner husband challenged the order of the trial court that had assessed and fixed an amount of Rs 40,000/- which was to be paid as interim maintenance by him. The petitioner appealed before the High Court submitting that the trial court made an error in its judgment by not appreciating the fact that he has been paying interim maintenance of Rs 15,000/month after the wife filed an application demanding the same.
The husband further submitted that the trial court has erred in ordering the payment of maintenance from the date of application because the petitioner was already paying maintenance of Rs. 15,000/-.
The High Court rejected the submissions of the husband and stated that the trial court's order for payment of maintenance relates back to the date of application. The Court relied on the judgment of the Supreme Court where it was held that the maintenance is to relate back to the date of the application and not from the date of the order.
Furthermore, the Court in its judgment made it clear that the maintenance has to be awarded to the wife from the date of application. This was because the maintenance is awarded to the wife to support herself and her children and the same cannot be treated as a fine or a bounty.
Thus, the court accordingly dismissed the petition and directed the petitioner to pay maintenance at the rate of Rs. 40,000/- per month from the date of filing of the application. It, however, agreed to adjust the amount that had been already paid by the husband as interim maintenance.
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