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ISLAMABAD, Nov 18 (APP): The Supreme Court of Pakistan has ruled that failure to provide maintenance (nafaqah) amounts to a husband’s continuous negligence, and that a wife is entitled to recover past maintenance dues as long as the claim is filed within the legally prescribed limitation period of six years.
The apex court held that maintenance becomes payable every month, and non-payment is equivalent to a debt which the husband is bound to discharge under all circumstances.
According to the written judgment approved for reporting on Tuesday, a three-member bench headed by Justice Shahid Waheed dismissed the appeal filed by Muhammad Aslam Chattha and upheld the Islamabad High Court’s decision which had ordered restoration of the wife’s arrears of past maintenance.
In its detailed verdict, the Supreme Court stated that under Islamic principles, the Quran, Sunnah, and the opinions of jurists, it is obligatory for a husband to provide complete maintenance to his wife according to her needs. If he neglects this responsibility, the wife is entitled not only to future maintenance but also to past dues.
The court further held that non-payment of maintenance constitutes a “continuing wrong,” meaning that each passing month gives rise to a fresh cause of action. Therefore, a husband cannot evade his obligation by arguing that the claim pertains to an older period or that time has lapsed.
The apex court observed that the woman’s claim was filed within the statutory limitation period and, on the basis of evidence, she is entitled to recover all past dues. The court also rejected the husband’s argument that he was only willing to pay maintenance for the previous six years.
The Supreme Court reaffirmed that maintenance is a wife’s legitimate right, and failure to pay it amounts to a debt owed by the husband.