Chandigarh lawyer gives wife ₹25,000 maintenance in coins, woman cries foul

A woman, in her 30s, broke down and lashed out at her lawyer husband after he handed over her coins worth ₹24,600 as monthly maintenance in a divorce case.

The high drama took place during a trial in the court of additional district and sessions judge Rajnish K Sharma on Tuesday.

Unable to control her emotions at what she called “sheer harassment”, the woman told the court how she got the majority of the monthly maintenance of ₹25,000 in the form of ₹1 and ₹2 coins. Only ₹400 were in Rs100 notes .

The matter was adjourned for July 27 so that the money could be counted. The husband is an advocate in the Punjab and Haryana High Court .

It was in 2014 that the husband filed for separation and later divorce. Two months back, the court directed him to give a monthly maintenance of ₹25,000 to the woman.

After he failed to do so, the woman moved the high court, which directed the husband to pay ₹50,000.

Finally, he paid a month’s amount to his estranged wife in court, but in coins.

Infuriated, the woman said it was her husband’s another way to torture and harass her.

“This is a clear mockery of law,” she said outside the courtroom. She refused to accept her husband’s argument that he did not have the money.

“He is a practising advocate and has high-profile clients. In addition to this, he has a number of properties to his name,” she said.

Meanwhile, the husband justified his move, stating that it’s nowhere written in what denomination the maintenance money has to paid.