The Bombay High Court has set aside a Pune family court order granting Rs 10 lakh in permanent alimony to a woman, ruling that the award was determined through guesswork without any factual evidence of the husband’s actual income.
A division bench comprising Justice Bharati Dangre and Justice Ashish Chavan remitted the matter to the Pune Family Court to re-evaluate the financial claims of both parties. The bench, however, instructed the husband to keep paying Rs 10,000 every month for the maintenance of their minor daughter, noting that these interim payments would be subject to future adjustments based on the trial court’s eventual decision.
Origin of the Matrimonial Dispute
The case stems from a divorce petition filed by the husband under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, on the grounds of cruelty. In October 2025, the family court ruled in his favour, finding the allegations of cruelty substantiated and dissolving the marriage. The wife did not contest the proceedings and did not appeal against the dissolution of the marriage.
While granting the decree, the family court directed the husband to pay a one-time permanent alimony of Rs 10 lakh to his former wife, alongside a monthly maintenance allowance of Rs 10,000 for their minor daughter. The husband subsequently approached the high court to challenge these financial directives.
Lack of Evidence on Earnings and Needs
Before the high court, the husband contended that the family court had fixed the financial awards arbitrarily, without any documentation regarding his true income or the actual financial requirements of his former wife.
Upon reviewing the record, the high court observed that the lower court had assumed the husband earned Rs 1 lakh per month merely because he possessed professional qualifications, had specific technical skills, and had previously been employed in Germany. The bench pointed out that this figure was an unsupported assumption made in the complete absence of evidentiary material demonstrating either his present financial capacity or the needs of his former wife.
Guidelines for Fresh Determination
Stating that permanent alimony must strictly correspond to a spouse’s genuine earnings and the dependent party’s requirements, the high court emphasized that judicial officers must not rely on conjecture.
The bench directed the Pune Family Court to formally record the statements of assets and liabilities from both spouses and permit them to submit relevant evidence before reaching a final determination on the alimony and child maintenance amounts.
