In a significant ruling, the Madhya Pradesh High Court said that a woman living with a man for a considerable period is entitled to maintenance after breakup, NDTV reported. The HC ruled that women in live-in relationships are entitled to maintenance even if they are not legally married.
The ruling came as a response to a petitioner who was ordered by a trial court to pay monthly allowance of Rs 1500 to his live-in partner. The petitioner had challenged the trial court order, but was left heartbroken by the High Court order.
In its judgment, the HC emphasized that the maintenance amount could not be denied if there was enough evidence of their live-in relationship. The HC cited the trial court’s finding, which concluded that the man and the woman had been living as husband and wife.
Additionally, considering the birth of a child within the relationship, the court affirmed the woman’s entitlement to maintenance.
Worth mentioning, Uttarakhand introduced the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) to provide legal framework for uniform marriage, divorce, land, property and inheritance laws. One of the sections of the bill made registration of live-in relationships mandatory.
The UCC states that the parents of the couple will be notified if they are found adults under the age of 21.