In Reji Baby v. Subi Mary, a bench of Justice Sandeep Mehta and Justice Manmohan dealt with a wife who, in a 2016 settlement and a later affidavit before the Family Court, gave up all monetary claims including maintenance, before a mutual-consent divorce in January 2017. The Court held that she could not later revive the waived claims through proceedings under the Domestic Violence Act. The adult daughter's independent monetary rights were held to be unaffected.
Read every clause of a mutual-consent divorce settlement carefully. A full and final settlement of maintenance is usually binding on the spouse who signs it, but children's rights are separate and cannot be signed away by a parent.
For the full process of a DV case in Delhi, see our guide to the domestic violence case in Delhi, and for every route to monthly support, our guide to the maintenance case in Delhi.
The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 lets an aggrieved woman seek protection orders, residence orders, monetary relief and compensation, including maintenance under Section 20. Maintenance can also be claimed under Section 144 of the BNSS [old Section 125 CrPC], and permanent alimony under laws such as Section 25 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. In a divorce by mutual consent under Section 13B of the Hindu Marriage Act, the parties often record a full and final settlement of all money claims, which the court considers before granting divorce.
In practice, courts treat a voluntary, informed settlement recorded before a court as binding on the spouses who sign it. However, a parent cannot give up a child's own right to maintenance, which a child can claim independently. Courts look closely at the settlement's wording, whether consent was free, and whether the claim being raised was actually covered by the earlier settlement.
According to this Supreme Court ruling, a wife who voluntarily waived all monetary claims in a settlement recorded before the court, followed by mutual-consent divorce, cannot revive those waived claims through Domestic Violence Act proceedings. Each case depends on the actual wording of the settlement and how it was made.
No. A child's right to maintenance belongs to the child and cannot be signed away by either parent. In this case the adult daughter's independent monetary rights were held to be unaffected. A child can still seek maintenance under the applicable law.
If consent was obtained by fraud, coercion or undue influence, that can be raised before the court that recorded the settlement or in appropriate proceedings. You will need evidence. Since such challenges are difficult and time-sensitive, get legal advice as early as possible.
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