Maintenance to Wife -- Interim Maintenance -- Allegation of Adultery -- No express statutory bar on wife seeking relief merely on allegation of adultery; interim maintenance rightly granted
(i) Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, S.23 -- Maintenance to Wife -- Interim Maintenance -- Allegation of Adultery -- There is no express statutory bar under the Act disentitling a woman from seeking reliefs merely on the allegation that she is living in adultery. Material or evidence relating to conduct of the wife, including allegations of adultery, is a relevant factor, but constitutes a matter requiring adjudication only after evidence is led. Interim maintenance is not liable to be denied on such allegations alone. (ii) Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, S.23 -- Maintenance to Wife -- Monetary Relief in Addition to Section 125 CrPC -- Monetary relief, including maintenance, can be granted under the Act in addition to maintenance awarded under Section 125 CrPC. (iii) Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, S.2(a) -- Aggrieved Person -- Abusive Language and Domestic Incident Report -- Allegations that the husband used abusive and derogatory language against the wife, including calling her a prostitute, evidenced through WhatsApp chats, fall prima facie within the broad contours of "domestic violence" under the Act, particularly where the Domestic Incident Report filed by the Protection Officer lends support to such allegations. Existence of a domestic relationship and allegations of domestic violence during its subsistence, prima facie borne out from the record, satisfy the requirements of an "aggrieved person" under Section 2(a) of the Act. (iv) Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, S.23 -- Maintenance to Wife -- Interim Maintenance -- Concurrent Findings Not to Be Disturbed on Mere Assertions -- At the stage of interim maintenance, the Court is not persuaded to interfere with concurrent findings of the Magistrate and Sessions Court merely on the basis of assertions, particularly where the assessment is founded on material placed on record by the petitioner himself. Whether credit entries are attributable to income or otherwise is a matter for examination in detail during trial and does not render the order granting interim maintenance perverse or illegal.
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