In a significant ruling, the Bombay High Court reaffirmed the rights of Muslim women to seek relief under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 (DV Act) even after obtaining a divorce.
The decision came in response to a revision application filed by a man challenging a sessions court order that had increased the maintenance amount awarded to his former wife in a domestic violence case.
The case centered around a Muslim woman who had accompanied her husband to Saudi Arabia in 2006. Disputes arose between her relatives and her husband's relatives, leading to alleged ill-treatment by her husband. In 2012, she returned to India with her husband and their children, but she claimed that the harassment continued. According to her, she was pressured to file false complaints against her relatives, and when she refused, she faced physical abuse from her husband's relatives, who even attempted to harm her. In response, she sought maintenance, shared household rights, and compensation from her husband.
The husband opposed her application, arguing that since she was a divorced Muslim woman, she was not entitled to maintenance under the Muslim Women (Protection Of Rights On Divorce) Act and that this should also apply to proceedings under the DV Act. He contended that the domestic violence claim was made more than a year after their separation.
Justice GA Sanap, presiding over the Nagpur bench of the High Court, dismissed the husband's arguments. Citing the Supreme Court case of Shabana Bano v. Imran Khan, the court emphasized that a divorced Muslim woman is entitled to maintenance as long as she does not remarry. The court ruled that even if the husband had given talaq (divorce), the wife could not be denied maintenance under Section 12 of the DV Act.
Furthermore, the court clarified that an "aggrieved person" under the DV Act includes a woman who has been in a domestic relationship with the man, encompassing past relationships as well. It held that the applicant, in this case, fell within the definition of an "aggrieved person" and a "domestic relationship," making her entitled to relief under the DV Act.
The High Court also addressed the issue of enhanced maintenance awarded by the sessions court. It stated that the wife is entitled to maintain the lifestyle and standard she was accustomed to while staying with her husband, underscoring the importance of ensuring economic stability and well-being for the woman.
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