This judgment is from 2020, where the SC bench comprising of Justice Indu Malhotra and R. Shubhash Reddy observed that the objective of providing maintenance is to ensure that the spouse should have the proper arrangement and should not be left in a vagrant state due to the failure of the marriage. The court also said that providing alimony should not be a punishment to the defendant’s spouse as well.

While delivering the judgment on a case named Rajnesh vs. Neha & Anr., the bench emphasized that the alimony amount should be reasonable and realistic in order to avoid extreme circumstances that neither the wife would go so extravagant that it will be oppressive for the respondent and it should not be minimal in cost that it will drive the spouse to penury.

The bench further added that there should be complete transparency between both the parties. While providing interim maintenance, the wife may exaggerate her needs, and corresponding to such, the husband needs to conceal his actual income. Thus, the bench directed that both the parties need to file an affidavit to the disclosure of assets and liabilities in all the maintenance proceedings to the district or family court.

The court further directed all the concerned court to look after the following factors:

1. In a marriage of long duration, where parties have endured the relationship for several years, it would be a relevant factor to be taken into consideration.
2. While passing a residence order under the Domestic Violence Act, the Magistrate may direct the respondent to pay the rent and other payments, having regard to the financial needs and resources of the parties.
3. If the wife is earning, it cannot operate as a bar from being awarded maintenance by the husband. The Court has to determine whether the income of the wife is sufficient to enable her to maintain herself, as per the lifestyle of her husband in the matrimonial home. An able-bodied husband must be presumed to be capable of earning sufficient money to maintain his wife and children, and cannot contend that he is not in a position to earn sufficiently to maintain his family

4.The onus is on the husband to establish with necessary material that there are sufficient grounds to show that he is unable to maintain the family, and discharge his legal obligations for reasons beyond his control. If the husband does not disclose the exact amount of his income, an adverse inference may be drawn by the Court.