Woman can't claim maintenance from second man without divorcing first husband: HC
The Allahabad High Court ruled that a woman cannot claim maintenance from a partner if she has not legally divorced her first husband. The court determined that the woman did not qualify as a 'legally wedded wife' under the law, overturning a lower court's maintenance order.
Why it matters
This ruling clarifies legal precedents regarding marriage validity and maintenance claims in India, emphasizing the necessity of formal divorce.
NEW DELHI: The Allahabad high court, on July 10, ruled that a man is not liable to pay maintenance to a woman as his 'wife' if she began living with him without divorcing her first husband, while dismissing a woman's maintenance claim against her partner.What was the dispute aboutAs per the court order, the case arose after a man named Santosh Kumar challenged an order passed by the family court in Chitrakoot on August 14, 2025. That order had directed him to pay Rs 2,000 a month to a woman and Rs 1,000 a month to her daughter, as maintenance under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).According to the woman's version before the trial court, her marriage to Santosh was solemnised through a compromise notarised on June 10, 2006, in the presence of witnesses, as per Hindu rituals.
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