EHSAN UL HAQ vs SHAHNAZ BEGUM And Other

This matter arises from a petition challenging the concurrent findings of the Family Courts regarding the fixation of maintenance. The core legal question concerns the propriety of the maintenance allowance awarded to the respondent and the mode of its payment considering the financial standing of the petitioner. The Supreme Court held that no good ground existed to interfere with the quantum of maintenance fixed at Rs. 1,000 per month by the Family Courts. However, taking into consideration the straitened financial circumstances of the petitioner, the court modified the manner of payment, permitting him to pay the outstanding balance in seventeen equal monthly instalments subject to strict default conditions. The key principle laid down is that while appellate or revisional courts will not ordinarily interfere with concurrent factual determinations regarding maintenance amounts without valid cause, equitable relief in the schedule of payment may be granted to a judgment debtor facing proven financial hardship, coupled with default clauses to protect the decree-holder's rights.