In Brief
Dr. Swapan Kumar Banerjee contested whether his ex-wife, whom he divorced on the ground of desertion, could claim maintenance under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The Supreme Court held that a divorced woman, regardless of the divorce ground, is entitled to claim maintenance. The statutory definition of 'wife' under Section 125 extends to divorced women. Sub-section (4), which bars maintenance when a wife refuses to cohabit, applies only to married women and not to divorced women who have no post-divorce obligation to live with their ex-husband. A husband cannot divorce his wife for desertion and then deny her maintenance. The Court dismissed the appeal.
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