Vishal Kumar vs Smt. Kailash Kumari

B.R. Arora, J.—This miscellaneous petition is directed against the order dated May 23, 1990, passed by the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Sri Ganganagar, by which the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate granted maintenance to the non-petitioner Smt. Kailash Kumari @ Rs. 300/- per month.

Smt. Kailash Kumari moved an application u/s 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure against her husband Vishal Kumar for grant of maintenance @ Rs. 400/- per month. It was alleged in the application that she was married to Vishal Kumar as per the Hindu customs and rites on November 8, 1982 and lived with her husband for some time. But later on, she was cruely treated by her in-laws and in the month of May, 1984, her in-laws tried to burn her by pouring kerosene oil on her, but the applicant saved her life by running and then she went to her parents'' house. Thereafter several Panchayats were held, but her husband did not take her to his house. It was further mentioned that the applicant has no source of income and, therefore, the maintenance @ Rs. 400/- per month may be allowed to her. This application was contested by the husband and it was mentioned that the allegations made in the application are wholly wrong and the husband is ready to keep her with him, but she herself has left his house and she was personally earning Rs. 300/- per month and, therefore, she is not entitled to any maintenance. Applicant Smt. Kailash Kumari, in support of her case, examined herself as AW. 1, Tara Chand AW. 2, Atma Ram AW. 3, Narain Das AW. 4 and Vinod Kumar AW. 5 and the non-applicant Vishal Kumar examined himself as NAW 1 and Roop Singh NAW 2. After trial, the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate came to the conclusion that the relations between the parties are not cordial, rather she was cruely treated by her husband and the proceedings u/s 107 Cr.P.C. were, also, initiated against the husband and his parents. The Court, therefore, came to the conclusion that she is not living with her husband for sufficient reasons. The Court, also, came to the conclusion that the husband is getting Rs. 800/- per month as he is working as the Driver in the Collectorate, Nagaur. The Court, therefore, awarded a sum of Rs. 300/- per month as maintenance allowance to her from the date of the application, i.e., with effect from January 11, 1985. It is against this order that the present petition u/s 482 Cr.P.C. has been filed.

Heard learned Counsel for the petitioner and the learned Counsel for the respondent and perused the judgment passed by the learned lower Court and the record of the case.

After carefully going through the record of the case and the judgment passed by the learned lower Court, I am of the opinion that Smt. Kailash Kumari was cruely treated by her husband and she has not left the house of her husband without any sufficient reason. When the husband tried to burn her by pouring kerosene oil on her in the month of February, 1984, then she left the roof of the husband. It cannot, therefore, be said that she is not living with her husband without just and sufficient reasons. A cellective reading of the statements of the witnesses clearly shows that the treatment of the husband towards his wife was not good and the relations between the husband and the wife were not cordial. Even the proceedings u/s 107 Cr.P.C. were initiated against the husband.

Now, so far as the question of awarding the maintenance @ Rs. 300/- per month is concerned, suffice it to say that in these hard days, the maintenance allowance @ Rs. 300/- per month cannot be said to be, in anyway, excessive. The petitioner in getting Rs. 800/- per month and he is working as the Driver in the Collectorate, Nagaur. Looking to the income of the petitioner, as well as the hiking prices of the essential commodities, the amount of the maintenance allowance @ Rs. 300/- per month, in my view, is perfectly just and proper.

In this view of the matter, in my opinion, the learned lower Court has not committed any illegality in awarding the maintenance allowance @ Rs. 300/- per month to the non-petitioner Smt Kailash Kumari.

Consequently, this miscellaneous petition has got no force and is hereby dismissed.