Guwahati, July 10: The Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that a divorced Muslim woman can claim maintenance from her husband under Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which deals with maintenance of wives.
Dismissing the petition of a Muslim man against the direction to pay interim maintenance to his divorced wife under Section 125 CrPC, Justices BV Nagarathna and Augustine George Masih delivered separate but concurrent judgments.
The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986, will not prevail over secular law, the two judges of the Supreme Court said. “We hereby dismiss the appeal in the criminal case, concluding that Section 125 CrPC is applicable to all women and not just married women,” Justice Nagarathna was quoted as saying.
The petitioner argued against the application of Section 125 CrPC after divorce in Muslim personal law, citing that the provisions of the 1986 Act were more favourable to Muslim women. However, the court emphasised the universal application of Section 125 CrPC, amended by the 2019 Act, which provides for additional remedies.
The court made it clear that the right to maintenance applies to all married women, regardless of their religion.
The court stated that alimony payments were not charity but a right of married women.
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