LUCKNOW: In a significant ruling, the Allahabad High Court held that once an order is passed declaring a marriage null and void, it automatically dates back to the date of the marriage. In such cases, the man would not be liable to pay maintenance to the wife as the marriage was terminated at the very onset.
The court clarified that when a marriage is declared null and void under Section 11 of the Hindu Marriage Act, it is considered invalid from the very beginning. As a result, no legal obligation remains on the man to provide maintenance to the wife.
The case involved a couple who married in February 2015. However, the relationship quickly turned bitter and the wife filed multiple FIRs against the man, alleging harassment and assault under various relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code.
During the hearing for anticipatory bail filed by the man, it was discovered that the wife had allegedly been previously married and had not disclosed this fact to the man initially.
The revelation about her existing marital status prompted the man to approach the family court seeking a declaration that their marriage was void. The family court agreed and declared their marriage null and void in November 2021. The wife appealed against this decision but later withdrew her case, making the family court’s order final.
Despite this, the wife pursued maintenance under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005. In August 2022, the Civil Judge in Ghaziabad granted her interim maintenance of ₹10,000 per month under Section 23 of the Act.
The man challenged the order in the appellate court, which upheld the maintenance order. Dissatisfied with the decision, the man approached the Allahabad High Court in a criminal revision plea.
After hearing both parties and reviewing the case details, the bench of Justice Rajeev Misra delivered the verdict.
The court took notice of the fact that the wife had allegedly entered into a second marriage while her first marriage was still legally valid, which amounted to polygamy—an act not allowed under Hindu law.
“Since by means of the declaratory decree, the marriage of the parties has been declared null and void, it shall relate back to the date of marriage. The logical outcome... is that once the marriage of the parties itself has been declared void ab initio, the subsequent relationship between the parties is of no consequence,” observed the Court.
The bench also stressed that once the marriage was declared void from the beginning, no valid "domestic relationship" as defined under Section 2(f) of the Domestic Violence Act, 2005 remained. Therefore, the wife could not claim maintenance based on a relationship that, legally, never existed.
As a result, both the interim maintenance order passed by the Civil Judge and the appeal dismissal by the Additional District Judge were set aside.
“There is no relationship between the parties in terms of Section 2(f) of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 since 21.11.2021,” the Court clarified.
The Court concluded that both parties would bear their own legal costs in the matter.