The Allahabad High Court has ruled that a husband's obligation to maintain his wife extends beyond his death, enabling the widow to seek support from her father-in-law.
In a recent order dated March 17, Justices Arindam Sinha and Satya Veer Singh dismissed a man's appeal against a family court decision. The family court had rejected his request to initiate perjury proceedings against his wife in a maintenance dispute.
The bench emphasized established law: "So much so, this obligation of the husband to maintain the wife attaches even after death of the husband in the law allowing the widow to claim maintenance from her father-in-law."
The husband argued his wife lied in her maintenance plea by claiming to be a homemaker, despite being employed and holding over Rs 20 lakh in fixed deposits (FDRs) from her father.
He admitted the FDRs were gifted by her father—who has no post-marriage duty to support her except if widowed—and noted she had broken most, leaving only Rs 4 lakh.
The High Court upheld the family court's findings. It noted the husband produced no documents proving his wife's employment: "There is clear finding of the Family Court that applicant-appellant did not produce any document to demonstrate respondent-wife was employed. She, saying she is not employed, cannot be compelled to prove the negative."
With no evidence of perjury or factual errors, the court found no grounds to admit the appeal.