Supreme Court of India · 2017
Kalyan Dey Chowdhury v. Rita Dey Chowdhury
In 2017 the Supreme Court ordered maintenance of Rs 20,000 a month in Kalyan Dey Chowdhury v. Rita Dey Chowdhury, against a declared income of Rs 95,527 a month.
Wondering what this looks like on your own income and marriage? Run the numbers.
Calculate your maintenance →Awarded
Rs 20,000a month, about Rs 30,909 in today's money
Award type
Monthly
Husband's income
Rs 95,527about Rs 1,47,631 today
Marriage lasted
22 years
Children
1
Claimed under
Outcome
Granted
What the court was looking at
By the date of the petition the marriage was 22 years old. There was one child, so child maintenance sat alongside the wife's own claim. The husband was described as salaried.
What the court held
The holdingTwenty five percent of the husband's net salary is just and proper as maintenance to the wife. The marriage was solemnised in 1995 and there was one child. The husband's net salary was about Rs 95,000 a month. The High Court had enhanced maintenance to Rs 23,000; the Supreme Court reduced it to Rs 20,000 because he had remarried and had a child from the second marriage.
Why it is still cited
This is where the 25 percent benchmark that runs through Indian maintenance practice was most clearly stated. It is the number most lawyers open with.
How it gets misread
Read it with thisThe reduction from Rs 23,000 to Rs 20,000 is the part people forget. The benchmark is a starting point that moves for the payer's other obligations, and a second family is a recognised reason to move it.
The point of interest
25% net salary rule established.
How it fits the framework
Since Rajnesh v. Neha in 2020, every maintenance order in India is meant to work through the same list of factors: the standard of living the marriage ran at, what the applicant reasonably needs, whether she is qualified and earning, and whether she gave up work for the family. A judgement from 2017 was decided before that list was written down, but the reasoning behind it is the reasoning courts had been applying for decades. There is a fuller account in how maintenance is calculated.
The calculator walks the same factors a magistrate does, then shows you the judgements nearest your facts.
See your estimate →Judgements near this one
Ranked by court, then by income bracket and marriage length rather than by date, so the comparison is with cases a court would actually treat as similar. Every row links to its own page.
| Case | Court | Year | Awarded | Claimed under | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bhuwan Mohan Singh v. Meena | Supreme Court of India | 2014 | Rs 2,500Rs 4,399 in today's money | Section 125 CrPC | Granted |
| Sunita Kachwaha v. Anil Kachwaha | Supreme Court of India | 2014 | Rs 3,000Rs 5,279 in today's money | Section 125 CrPC | Granted |
| U. Sree v. U. Srinivas | Supreme Court of India | 2012 | Rs 50,00,000Rs 1,03,78,738 in today's money | Section 25 HMA | Granted |
| Parvin Kumar Jain v. Anju Jain | Supreme Court of India | 2024 | Rs 5,00,00,000 | Section 25 HMA | Granted |
| Rinku Baheti v. Sandesh Sharda (Rs 12 Cr) | Supreme Court of India | 2024 | Rs 12,00,00,000 | Article 142 | Granted |
Sources
- (2017) 14 SCC 200
- Full text of the judgement on IndianKanoon.
- Inflation adjustment method: how we restate old awards.
This page summarises a reported judgement for general information. It is not legal advice and it is not a substitute for reading the judgement itself or speaking to a lawyer about your own facts.
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