The Allahabad High Court rules that a husband cannot be relieved of his maintenance obligation merely because the wife’s parents support her financially during a period of distress. The court made the observation while hearing a criminal revision petition filed by a woman and her two minor children against an order of a family court in Bulandshahr. In December 2023, the family court had rejected the wife’s claim for maintenance in full, though it awarded Rs 3,000 per month as maintenance to each of the children. Allowing the revision petition, Justice Garima Prashad held that the wife’s parental support does not amount to income that can be attributed to her for the purposes of maintenance under Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC). The court emphasised that assistance from the wife’s parents cannot substitute for the husband’s statutory duty to maintain his wife. The High Court therefore set aside the family court’s denial of the wife’s maintenance, reinforcing that maintenance under Section 125 is not conditional on whether the wife receives help from her family during difficult times.