Domestic violence: Man asked to pay maintenance to wife, kids

A local court has directed a man to pay Rs 5,000 as monthly maintenance to his estranged wife and children in a domestic violence case filed against him.
The court, however, refused to provide police protection to the woman and her children, saying she has not narrated any recent incident of violence on her by her husband, with whom she got married in 2005 and has been living separately since over a year.
The court noted that the woman, a Delhi resident, could not prove her claim that her estranged husband was earning Rs 30,000 per month by doing religious work and pujas in temples and houses.

"Accordingly the income of respondent is assessed as per Minimum Wages Act. It be observed that the children of the parties are in the care and custody of the complainant. Having regard to the status of parties and their responsibilities, the respondent (man) is directed to pay Rs 5000 per month to his wife as maintenance," Metropolitan Magistrate Mona Tardi Kerketta said.
The woman, in her complaint, alleged that she was physically and mentally tortured within few days of marriage for dowry.
Seeking maintenance of Rs 20,000 per month, she had alleged that her children were also victims of the torture at the hands of her husband and suffered from malnutrition due to inadequate food and milk given to them.

She had further said that she had made the complaints to an NGO and also to the Burari Police Station, where her husband appeared and asked for forgiveness for his cruelties, but soon returned on his old pattern and threw her and the children out of his house in February 2014.