Orissa High Court: Highly Educated Wives Cannot Remain Idle Just to Claim Maintenance from Husbands

Post By 24 Law
June 25, 2025

Pranav B Prem

The Orissa High Court has ruled that a highly educated woman cannot remain idle without attempting to earn a livelihood merely to impose the financial burden of maintenance on her husband. The Court emphasized that Section 125 of the CrPC is meant to provide financial support to wives who are genuinely unable to maintain themselves, not those who deliberately choose to be unemployed despite being qualified to work.

Case Background

A Single Bench of Justice Gourishankar Satapathy delivered this ruling while hearing a petition filed by a husband challenging a Family Court order that directed him to pay ₹8,000 per month as maintenance to his estranged wife. The Family Court had determined the husband's monthly net salary as ₹32,541, taking into account his gross salary of ₹45,362 and his responsibility toward his dependent mother. The wife had filed an affidavit declaring herself as unemployed. However, during cross-examination, she admitted to having previously worked at Grihasthi Udyog Pvt. Ltd., Rourkela, and NDTV. She also holds a science degree and a Post-Graduate Diploma in Journalism and Mass Communication. Despite these qualifications, the Trial Court awarded her maintenance, prompting the husband to challenge the order before the High Court.

Court’s Observations

Upon reviewing the case, the High Court noted that the wife is well-educated and had prior work experience. The Court held: "Law never appreciates those wives who remain idle only to saddle the liability of paying maintenance on the husband by not working or not trying to work despite having proper and high qualification."

The Court further elaborated on the legislative intent behind Section 125 CrPC: "The intention and objective of legislature in enacting Section 125 of CrPC is to provide succor to those wives, who are unable to maintain themselves and have no sufficient income for their sustenance. The social objective behind the provision for grant of maintenance, if considered on the admitted facts as discussed in this case, it would go to disclose the wife’s need and requirement to be balanced not only with the income and liability of the husband, but also has to be considered on the backdrop of the education and prospect of the wife to earn."

Reduction of Maintenance

Recognizing that the wife had the potential to earn and sustain herself, the High Court reduced the maintenance amount from ₹8,000 to ₹5,000 per month. The Court reasoned that the reduction appropriately balanced the husband’s financial obligations, including his responsibility toward his dependent mother, and the wife’s ability to seek employment. "...taking into account the admitted income of the petitioner-husband and balancing it with the requirement of the petitioner-husband together with his dependent mother and taking into consideration the responsibility of the husband to maintain his wife, who in this case at the time of filing of application for grant of maintenance was jobless, but she having definite prospect to work and earn her livelihood, this Court considers that interest of justice would be best served, if the quantum of maintenance is reduced by Rs.3,000/- per month." The Court directed the husband to pay ₹5,000 per month to the wife, effective from the date of the application, with the balance arrears to be paid in four bi-monthly installments starting from March 7, 2025.

This judgment reiterates the principle that maintenance under Section 125 CrPC is not a tool for financial dependency when the wife is capable of earning. The ruling reinforces that well-educated women with the potential to work should not abstain from employment solely to claim maintenance.