Madhya Pradesh High Court
Manish vs Shraddha on 18 November, 2025
NEUTRAL CITATION NO. 2025:MPHC-IND:33497
1 CRR-4749-2024
IN THE HIGH COURT OF MADHYA PRADESH
AT INDORE
BEFORE
HON'BLE SHRI JUSTICE GAJENDRA SINGH
CRIMINAL REVISION No. 4749 of 2024
SMT. SHRADHHA AND OTHERS
Versus
MANISH CHOUHAN
Appearance:
Shri Amar Singh Rathore - Advocate for the petitioners.
Shri Jitendra Verma - Advocate for the respondent [R-1].
WITH
CRIMINAL REVISION No. 6215 of 2024
MANISH
Versus
SHRADDHA AND OTHERS
Appearance:
Shri Jitendra Verma - Advocate for the petitioner.
Shri Amar Singh Rathore - Advocate for the respondents.
(Heard on: 11.11.2025)
(Delivered on: 18.11.2025)
ORDER
Both criminal revisions arises out of judgment dated 03.09.2024 in
MJCR No.716/2020 by the Additional Judge to the court of Principal Judge,
Family Court, Indore (M.P.) whereby an amount of Rs.7,000/- per month has
been awarded to Shraddha Chouhan/wife and minor child/ Ku. Mihika as
maintenance under section 125 of the Cr.P.C., 1973 from the date of order.
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2. Criminal Revision No.4749/2024 is preferred by the wife and minor
daughter for enhancement of maintenance amount to the tune of Rs.20,000/-
per month whereas Criminal Revision No.6215/2024 is preferred by the
husband for setting aside of the impugned order dated 03.09.2024.
3. Facts of the case in brief are that Manish Chouhan married to
Shraddha Chouhan on 27.04.2015 as per hindu rituals at Indore. A girl child
Mihika was born out of their wedlock on 23.05.2017 at Malwa hospital,
Indore and an application for maintenance was preferred on 11.11.2020
alleging various acts of cruelty, neglect of maintenance, inability to maintain
themselves and sufficiency of means of Manish Choudhary/husband who is
working as Assistant Grade-III in the Office of Commissioner, Tribal
Development, Bhopal and an amount of Rs.20,000/- (Rs.15,000/- for wife
and Rs.5,000/- for minor child) was claimed as maintenance.
4. An application for interim maintenance was also preferred and vide
order dated 21.12.2021 an amount of Rs.7,000/- per month to wife and
Rs.2,000/- per month to minor daughter was granted.
5. Application was replied and allegations of cruelty and harassment
were denied. It was specifically stated that wife was pressurizing him to live
separately from his mother. He has responsibility of mother and two
widowed sisters and their children in a meagre amount of Rs.28,750/- as net
salary. Wife is highly qualified and earns sufficient by providing coaching at
Kautilya Academy, Indore to the students appearing for State Service Public
Commission and Union Public Commission examinations. It was alleged that
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wife has neglected him for no reasons and lodged false report on 06.11.2020
at Mahila Thana, Indore despite his genuine attempts to save the marital life.
5. Family Court, Indore has recorded the evidence of wife as PW-1,
her father as PW-2 and admitted the documents Exhibit P/1 to P/5. Husband
examined as DW-1 and adduced the documents as Exhibit-D/1 to D/3.
6. Appreciating the evidence trial court has recorded the finding that
wife and minor daughter have no fixed source of income whereas husband is
working as Assistant Grade-III in the Office of Commissioner, Tribal
Development, Bhopal and earns Rs.40,000/- to Rs.43,000/- per month. He is
neglecting wife and minor daughter and husband is responsible for living
separately without wife and minor daughter and awarded amount of
maintenance as mentioned in para-1 of the judgment.
7. Challenging the impugned order Criminal Revision No.4749/2024 is
preferred by wife on the ground that awarded amount is on lower side and
the same is required to be enhanced. Earlier husband filed an application for
restitution of conjugal rights but the same was withdrawn and filed an
application for dissolution of marriage. Husband is earning Rs.55,000/- per
month and they requires enhancement of the maintenance amount.
8. Criminal Revision No.6215/2024 is preferred on the ground that he
has to bear the responsibility of his mother and two widowed sisters and their
family and he has to pay the installment of personal loans of Rs.4,75,000/-
and Rs.85,000/- respectively and trial court has awarded the maintenance by
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ignoring these vital facts of the case.
9. Heard.
10. Perused the record.
11. The husband is pressing Exhibit-D/1 salary slip of July, 2021 in
which basic salary is Rs.27,800/- and net salary is 28,750/-. There is no
record that he is bound to pay the installment of personal loan whereas in pay
slip of June, 2026 basic salary is Rs.32,100/- and gross salary is Rs.53,349/-
after deductions of Rs.5,384/- total net salary is Rs.47,965/-. If he feels the
responsibility towards mother and two sisters and their family then he
certainly have the responsibility of wife and minor child. A balance is to be
struck between responsibility of husband and rights of wife and minor child.
In such a scenario Criminal Revision No.6215/2024 filed by the husband
have no substance and is hereby dismissed.
12. Para-12 of cross examination of Shraddha (PW-1) discloses that
she is graduate in Bio-Technology and masters in Public Administration and
para-13 discloses that she possess good health. Accordingly her claim for
enhancement of maintenance have no substance but minor child's needs
cannot be sacrificed for the liabilities that he has voluntarily undertaken to
bear. An amount of Rs.5,000/- per month is appropriate claim for minor
child. Accordingly Criminal Revision No.4749/2024 is partly allowed and an
award of Rs.2,000/- per month is enhanced to Rs.5,000/- per month in favour
of minor child.
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13. As per Rajnesh vs. Neha and Another 2021 (2) SCC 324 the
amount of maintenance has to be awarded from the date of application i.e.
11.11.2020. Accordingly, the amount of maintenance including enhancement
shall be payable from the date of application i.e. 11.11.2020 and the amount
of interim maintenance shall be adjusted. Accordingly CRR No.4749/2024 is
allowed partly.
(GAJENDRA SINGH)
JUDGE
ajit
