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The Delhi High Court has ruled that the maintenance amount given to the estranged spouse should be fixed according to the present price index apart from the other factors.
Justice G S Sistani hiked the maintenance awarded by a trial court to one Rita Sharma from Rs 6,500 to Rs 15,000, saying, the petitioner is entitled to enjoy a similar lifestyle as she enjoyed in her matrimonial home. Further, the court has to consider the reasonable wants of the petitioner and the maintenance should not be unreasonably low. Considering the present price index, he is satisfied that it is not possible for the petitioner to maintain herself and her minor school going son with dignity with a meagre amount,' the court observed.
The court was hearing the petition filed by Rita who had challenged the trial court order that had fixed maintenance in 2008 at Rs 6,500 per month.
Rita and Suresh got married on October 31, 2000 and separated in 2006. The trial court fixed Rs 4,000 for Rita and Rs 2,500 for her son Nitin.
In her petition, she stated that the maintenance awarded by the trial court is extremely unreasonable and insufficient for her and her son.
Keeping in mind Suresh's present salary of over Rs 4 lakh annually as a senior software engineer, the court states, in India, parties do not truthfully reveal their income. For self-employed or persons employed in the unorganised sector, truthful income never surfaces. Tax avoidance is the norm.
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