In a significant judgement, the Allahabad High Court has said that a divorced Muslim woman is entitled to claim maintenance from her husband even after the period of 'Iddat' and until she remarries.
A single bench comprising Justice Karunesh Singh Pawar of the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court passed the order on the petition of a Muslim woman who had challenged the order of a lower court rejecting payment of maintenance to her after divorce.
'Iddat', according to the Muslim Personal Law, is a period of three months during which time a divorced Muslim woman can not remarry.
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The woman was initially awarded maintenance by a trial court in Uttar Pradesh's Pratapgarh district after divorce. The husband, however, challenged the order before a superior court which overturned the decision.
The HC cited the decision of the Supreme Court in the case of Sabana Bano in which it was held that divorced Muslim women are entitled to maintenance as long as they do not re-marry. It further said that the provision under Section 125 CrPC was a beneficial piece of legislation and the benefit thereof must accrue to the divorced Muslim women.
''It has also been held that the divorced Muslim woman shall be entitled to claim maintenance from her husband under Section 125 Cr.P.C. even after expiry of the period of iddat as long as she does not remarry,'' the bench said.
''Cumulative reading of the relevant portions of judgments of this Court in Danial Latifi (supra) and Iqbal Bano (supra) would make it crystal clear that even a divorced Muslim woman would be entitled to claim maintenance from her divorced husband, as long as she does not remarry,'' the court further said setting aside the order of the lower court.
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