COURT REJECTS ALIMONY OF WOMAN OVER EXTRAMARITAL AFFAIR

Afamily court has rejected a woman’s petition seeking maintenance from her ex-husband. Shabnam (name changed), a 29-year-old who has been living with her parents for the past five years at Gaikwad Haveli, had filed a complaint against her husband Arbaaz (name changed), 33, who had thrown her out of the house and sought alimony from him. Shabnam and Arbaaz were married in April, 1998. They had two children, a boy and girl, from the marriage. They lived in a joint family at the time.

As per the woman’s allegation, after five years of the marriage post the children, her in-laws used to instigate her husband against her. He beat her up and put pressure on her to get money from her parents. As per the woman’s petition, in 2010, Arbaaz forcibly took her to a court and got her to sign on divorce papers. He then took custody of the kids. Since then she has been staying with her parents. Arbaaz who has a business in Chandola, earns Rs 50,000 per month, so she should get Rs 10,000 maintenance a month, she states.

The matter came before the court and a notice was issued to Arbaaz. He gave a written reply to the court, stating that the woman was of loose character, which was the main reason for the troubled marriage. He said the complaint against him under IPC Section 498A (husband or his relative subjecting her to cruelty) is false. Regarding maintenance, he said that he earned only Rs 5,000 per month. Moreover, Shabnam earned around Rs 25,000 from modelling assignments. For the past four years, she has had an affair with an old friend. In their cross examination, Arbaaz’s lawyers M G Baghban and H M Mandali found that Shabnam indeed had an affair with a friend.

She even took her children to meet him and also chatted on phone with him in the absence of her husband. All this Arbaaz came to know from his neighbour’s daughter. The woman in her deposition said that she had not demanded Rs 2 lakh to divorce Arbaaz. He runs a shop and earns well, while she has the responsibility of her parents and has no source of income. On the other hand, Arbaaz said he did everything for her to mend her ways. He even changed 20 houses. He too caught her red-handed with her paramour at my house. Even their daughter told the court that her mother had an extramarital affair.

Despite his requests, she left the house and went to her parents’ house. Thereafter, he divorced her under Muslim Personal Law. To run my house, he does welding work and to take care of the children, he re-married. Family Court Judge Rashida Vora after hearing both sides and going through evidence, ordered that there was no mental or physical harassment by the husband. Even their 12-yearold daughter said that her mother had extramarital relations. Looking at all these points, Shabnam is not entitled for maintenance and her petition is rejected.