High Court gives verdict in the case of demanding maintenance allowance from widowed daughter-in-law, petition of elderly couple rejected

Allahabad High Court: In India, it is traditionally believed that it is the moral duty of the daughter-in-law to take care of her in-laws. In many cases, even after the death of her husband, the widowed daughter-in-law continues to serve her in-laws and bear their expenses. However, now Allahabad High Court has made an important comment on this issue. The court clarified that there is no legal obligation on the daughter-in-law to maintain her in-laws. The High Court clarified its point and said that no matter how important and strong the moral responsibility is, it cannot be converted into legal responsibility.

According to the report of Live Law, High Court Justice Madan Pal Singh said that under Section 144 of BNS, the daughter-in-law cannot be forced to bear the expenses of her in-laws.

Learn about the case in detail?

Actually, this case is from Agra where an elderly couple demanded maintenance from their daughter-in-law after the death of their son. When the daughter-in-law refused, she filed a petition in the Agra Family Court. In the petition, the couple said that their daughter-in-law is working as a constable in Uttar Pradesh Police and her income is sufficient. He also argued that after the death of his son, only the daughter-in-law has received the benefits and other facilities related to his son’s job. The couple said that they are elderly, uneducated and financially weak, hence they should be provided maintenance from their daughter-in-law. In August 2025, the Family Court had rejected this petition. After which the couple appealed in Allahabad High Court.

High Court also rejected the petition

The couple argued in the High Court that the moral responsibility of the daughter-in-law should be considered as a legal responsibility, but the court rejected this and rejected their appeal. Also, the court clarified that issues related to inheritance of the deceased son’s property do not come into play in such maintenance proceedings.

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What did the High Court say?

Justice Madan Pal Singh said that under Section 144 of the Indian Judicial Code, the daughter-in-law cannot be forced to maintain her in-laws. He said that under Indian law, mother-in-law and father-in-law are not included in the scope of maintenance, hence there is no legal obligation on the daughter-in-law to bear their expenses. The court clarified that as per its understanding, the legislature has not included mother-in-law in this provision, which makes it clear that while making the law, it was not the intention to put this responsibility on the daughter-in-law.