The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday directed Indian cricketer Mohammed Shami to pay an enhanced interim maintenance of ₹4 lakh per month to his estranged wife and their minor daughter, revising a previous lower court order.
Justice Dr. Ajoy Kumar Mukherjee passed the order while hearing a plea filed by Shami’s wife, challenging a sessions court order which had earlier directed Shami to pay ₹1.3 lakh per month. The High Court increased the amount to ₹1.5 lakh per month for the wife and ₹2.5 lakh for the daughter until final disposal of the pending domestic violence case.
“In my considered opinion, a sum of ₹1,50,000 per month to the petitioner no.1 (wife) and ₹2,50,000 to her daughter would be just, fair and reasonable to ensure financial stability for both the petitioners, till disposal of the main application,” the Court stated.
The Court added that this amount shall be payable from the date of filing of the application under Section 23 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 (PWDV Act).
Justice Mukherjee also clarified that if Shami wishes to voluntarily contribute additional funds towards his daughter’s education or other expenses, he is at liberty to do so.
The Bench was hearing an appeal by the wife against a sessions court order that had modified a magistrate’s direction to pay ₹80,000 only for the daughter, excluding any maintenance to the wife. Shami’s wife had originally sought ₹10 lakh as interim maintenance – ₹7 lakh for herself and ₹3 lakh for the child.
During the proceedings, the High Court noted the lack of clarity in the lower courts’ rationale behind awarding a relatively low maintenance amount despite Shami’s substantial earnings. It observed:
“The opposite party/husband’s income, financial disclosure and earnings established that he is in a position to pay a higher amount. The petitioner wife who has remained unmarried and is living independently with the child is entitled to a levelled maintenance that she enjoyed during her continuance of marriage and which reasonably secure her future as well as future of the child.”
The Court further directed the trial court to expeditiously decide the woman’s main application under the PWDV Act.
Shami married the petitioner in April 2014, and the couple has a daughter born in July 2015. In 2018, the wife filed an FIR alleging domestic violence, following which she initiated proceedings under the PWDV Act.
Counsel Representation:
- For the wife: Advocates Imtiaz Ahmed, Ghazala Firdaus, Sk Saidullah, Mithun Mondal, and Md Arsalan
- For Mohammed Shami: Advocates Sandipan Ganguly, Sompriya Chowdhury, B Kumar, and I Basu
