Indian law do not talk about making a women financially empower in a separation, it does not talk about become financial independent. The law has made such women dependent of their husband and fight to live in minimal care of living standard.
In an ideal scenario, women must be given vocational training rather making them dependent of their husband in separation. Court even allowing maintenance to the wife living separately in a year of marriage. The young women has the capability to “work and earn” but their capabilities has been underestimated.
Let’s have a look at the various acts of maintenance or guardianship:
Section 125 of The Code Of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), 1973 “Order for maintenance of wives, children and parents”, it define “‘wife’ includes a woman who has been divorced by, or has obtained a divorce from, her husband and has not remarried.”. Under 125 a wife, “minor or parents can claim maintenance who have been neglected or refused to maintain”.
Domestic Violence Act, 2005, “Magistrate have the power to order an appropriate lump sum payment or monthly payments of maintenance”.
THE GUARDIANS AND WARDS ACT, 1890 “Section 12(3) (a) the Court to place a female minor in the temporary custody of a person claiming to be her guardian on the ground of his being her husband, unless she is already in his custody with the consent of her parents… Section 41(d) in the case of a female ward, by her marriage to a husband who is not unfit to be guardian of her person or…”
THE HINDU MINORITY AND GUARDIANSHIP ACT, 1956 for the natural guardian “Section 6(a) in the case of a boy or an unmarried girl—the father, and after him, the mother… and Section 6(c) in the case of a married girl—the husband..”
This is a welcome step that, in some cases court has allowed separated wife to go for vocational training and ordered husband to bear the cost of training. As society is changing out family system accordingly changing, now youngsters are graduate, engineering or management graduate, then for the Interest of Nation , rather becoming dependent this will be good idea to “Work and Earn”. Let’s not make an army of “Ideal women Sitting at home”.
