Gujarat HC rejects maintenance plea by father who abandoned first family for second marriage

Gujarat High Court has dismissed a revision application filed by a 55-year-old man seeking maintenance from his son, observing that the plea appeared to be a tactic to avoid legal obligations toward his first wife. 

Justice Gita Gopi upheld the Family Court’s decision, noting that the father is physically capable, gainfully employed, and currently supporting a second family.   

The applicant married the mother of the respondent - son in 1995 under Muslim Shariat Law. However, the couple began living separately in 2001 following domestic disputes. While the mother raised their son and daughter alone, the applicant remarried and fathered another child with his second wife.   

The legal battle intensified after the first wife successfully obtained a maintenance and rent order against the applicant in October 2024 under the Domestic Violence Act. Shortly thereafter, the father filed for maintenance from his 28-year-old son, a move the court scrutinised heavily.   

The high court noted that the applicant runs a clothing commission business and is "able-bodied”, earning enough to maintain his second household. Evidence suggested the father had transferred property specifically to avoid paying maintenance to his first wife.   

The court agreed with the Family Court’s finding that the petition was filed primarily to "scuttle" the mother’s ongoing Domestic Violence Act proceedings.   

The court subsequently rejected revision application.