Before his death, Atul, who is a native of Bihar, recorded an 80-minute long video in which he accused his wife Nikita Singhania and her family of extorting money from him by slapping multiple cases on him.
In the wake of Bengaluru techie Atul Subhash's suicide, the Supreme Court has laid down eight key factors to decide the amount of alimony in divorce cases. The top court's decision comes amid the debate surrounding Subhash's suicide, who alleged his wife and in-laws harassed and extorted money from him.
Before his death, Atul, who is a native of Bihar, recorded an 80-minute long video in which he accused his wife Nikita Singhania and her family of extorting money from him by slapping multiple cases on him.
In the video and his 24-page suicide note, Subhash also criticised the legal and justice system.
While deciding a divorce case on Tuesday, a bench comprising of Justices Vikram Nath and PV Varale laid down eight factors to keep in mind when deciding the amount for alimony. As per the apex court, here are the eight factors -
Social and economic status of husband and wife
Basic needs of wife and children in the future
Qualification and employment of both parties
Means of income and property
Wife's standard of living while living in in-laws' house
Has she left her job to take care of the family?
Reasonable amount for legal battle for a wife who is not working
What will be the financial status of the husband, his earnings and other responsibilities along with alimony.
The court observed that the factors may not form a simple formula, but can serve as guidelines in cases related to permanent alimony.
"It is also necessary to ensure that the amount of permanent alimony should not penalise the husband but should be made with the aim of ensuring a decent standard of living for the wife," the top court added further.
Atul Subhash's case has also revived the debate regarding the misuse of dowry laws in India, especially Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code which addresses cruelty by husbands and their relatives against married women.
After their marriage in 2019, Subhash has alleged that his wife and in-laws would repeatedly demand money from him with the amount running into lakhs. When he refused to give the money, his wife took their son and left home in 2021.
As per Atul, his wife and her family demanded one crore to settle the case, but later hiked to amount to three crore. The techie called for justice in his suicide note as well by writing "Justice is Due" on every single page of the note.