The Supreme Court ruled on August 20, 2026, that a mother's income cannot solely justify reducing a father's financial obligation for child maintenance. According to reports from Mint, the court held that the mother's income, by itself, could not justify halving the father's maintenance liability. The court emphasized that while the obligation to maintain children is shared by both parents, it cannot be divided by arithmetic alone.
The dispute began when a man's wife and their two daughters approached the family court seeking ₹2.5 lakh per month in maintenance. As reported by SCC Online, the wife worked as a MBBS and DGO qualified gynaecologist at a hospital in Greater Noida, earning ₹1.5 lakh monthly. The husband, a qualified doctor, stated he earned ₹2 lakh per month as a consultant pediatrician and allegedly ran his own nursing home. The family court declined interim maintenance to the wife since she had sufficient income but awarded ₹30,000 per month to each daughter, totaling ₹60,000.
The Allahabad High Court reduced the maintenance amount to ₹15,000 per daughter, holding that the entire burden could not fall on the husband as the wife was also earning. According to Mint, the Supreme Court restored the family court's award of ₹30,000 per daughter, considering the daughters' age, schooling, parents' status and the husband's disclosed income of ₹2 lakh per month. The court noted that the daughters lived with their mother, who was responsible for their daily care and upbringing while also working.
Courts do not ordinarily divide child expenses through a mechanical formula or solely in proportion to parents' respective incomes, as noted by the Supreme Court. According to Apoorva Pandey, Advocate at Delhi High Court, courts consider several factors including each parent's financial capacity and liabilities, the child's reasonable needs, education, lifestyle and the standard of living the child would ordinarily enjoy. Reena Bajaj, Partner at Singhania & Co., explained that courts can recognize the custodial parent's contribution through daily childcare, supervision, education, healthcare, household responsibilities and emotional support.
A father can approach the court seeking modification or reduction of maintenance if there has been a substantial increase in the mother's income after the original order, according to legal experts. Supriya Majumdar, Partner at Elarra Law Offices, noted that such revision depends on factors such as loans, health condition, and parental obligations. She emphasized that the mother's income is viewed as a resource to provide additional comfort for the children but not as a primary source to discount the father's primary liability.
