P. S. GIRIDHARAN Vs. CHITRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner is husband and respondent is wife. The respondent/wife filed petition before the learned Judicial Magistrate, Tambaram, under Sec. 125 Cr.P.C. seeking maintenance of Rs.12,000.00, in which the learned Magistrate ordered Rs.8000.00 as interim maintenance, against which, the husband filed present revision.

(2.) The case of the respondent/wife is that the marriage between the petitioner and the respondent took place on 27/11/2009 at Sri Sumathy Kalyana Mandapam, Trichy, and due to misunderstanding the petitioner and the respondent living separately. The respondent/wife filed a petition for divorce in H.M.O.P.No.346 of 2010 and got the decree of divorce and since the petitioner/husband is a man of means and he neglected to maintain his wife, the wife has filed a petition under Sec. 125 Cr.P.C. seeking maintenance of Rs.12,000.00 and she also filed a miscellaneous petition in C.M.P.No.98 of 12. The learned Magistrate after hearing both the parties, ordered a sum of Rs.8,000.00 as interim maintenance and challenging the same, the husband is before this Court with the present criminal revision case.

(3.) Learned counsel appearing for the petitioner/husband would submit that the respondent/wife had a petition in H.M.O.P.No.346 of 2010 under Sec. 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act, seeking divorce, in which she also filed an application in I.A.No.125 of 2011 seeking interim maintenance and she had already been granted maintenance of Rs.12,000.00 p.m. by the Subordinate Judge in the said application. Therefore the respondent/wife is not entitled to invoke Sec. 125 Cr.P.C. The learned Magistrate failed to appreciate the fact that the respondent/wife filed petition under Sec. 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act seeking divorce, which is pending, and she is already getting maintenance of Rs.12,000.00 and erroneously ordered Rs.8,000.00 as interim maintenance, which cannot be permitted in law.