MUMBAI: A UK chartered accountant has been ordered to pay Rs43 lakh as maintenance arrears to his ailing and bedridden estranged wife. The woman had filed a domestic violence complaint before the magistrate’s court.
The accused tried to claim that he was unemployed and showed his income as nil. “From the statements of the two sides, it is not believable that the qualified respondent (husband) residing and working in a city in the UK had no income of his own. Whereas the documents filed by the applicant (wife) appear believable that the respondent is earning an income of £34,953 (Rs33.48 lakh),” the court said.
The court said that when it was looking at the income of the parties, it appears that the husband should pay Rs1.2 lakh per month interim maintenance towards personal and medical expenses of the woman. The court said that the woman was entitled to the interim maintenance from the date she had filed the plea, August 2019. The woman told the court that she needed Rs 2 lakh every month for medical expenses.
The ailing woman moved a plea through her father as she was unable to appear in court in person.
She said she married the man in 2016 and within two months she was subjected to cruelty. The woman alleged that she was taunted, forced to work and deposit her monthly income in a joint account with the man. She alleged that her in-laws fought with her on petty issues and forced her to work in the kitchen. The woman said due to the accused she was subsequently forced to resign from her job.
The woman said that in February 2017 she was admitted to hospital in a serious condition and underwent surgery for neurological issues. The woman alleged that her husband did not bother about her and forced her family to come to London and look after her. She submitted that the doctor had attributed her condition to possible extreme stress.
The accused denied the allegations and claimed he had taken care of the woman and borne all expenses. The man said he had no income and was dependent on his family.
