Copyright brecorder
LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) has held that a mother or father, if left dependent and without means, can invoke jurisdiction of the family court to seek maintenance from their sons. The court passed this order on a petition of Azhar Ijaz Khawaja who approached the court against the decision of a family court for taking coercive measures against him to pay interim maintenance to her mother. Mst. Riffat-un-Nissa had instituted a suit for maintenance against her four sons, including the petitioner. The court said that the claim of maintenance by dependent parents against their sons, being a family dispute rooted in familial obligations, squarely falls within the domain of family affairs and is therefore well within the jurisdiction of the family court. The court said the purpose of the Family Act, as evident from its scheme and structure, is to provide a specialized forum for the expeditious settlement of disputes relating to marriage, family affairs, and matters connected therewith. The court said, although, Section 17-A of Family Act is not attracted to the present dispute wherein a mother has sought maintenance from her sons; however, deliberate omission of any qualifying or restrictive language in the schedule is highly relevant and manifest of the legislative intention that the entry should not be confined. The court observed that family courts possess jurisdiction to decide all ancillary issues necessary for complete and effective adjudication of disputes within their domain and added the schedule for maintenance is inclusive and must be interpreted purposively to advance the true spirit and objective of the statute, the court added. The court observed that under Islamic jurisprudence, the obligation of sons to maintain their parents squarely falls within the scope of maintenance. Support for this position can be found in the principles of Muhammadan Law, which categorically affirms the responsibility of children to maintain their indigent parents, the court added. The court; therefore, observed that as statutory provisions do not expressly define the nature of relationship between the person claiming maintenance and the party against whom, maintenance is sought, principles of Islamic Law which are the primary source governing family relations, must be applied, the court added. The court noted that the family court directed the defendants to pay interim maintenance; however, coercive measures were initiated, even before the expiry of the prescribed period. The court observed although the family court is fully empowered to fix and direct the payment of interim maintenance during the pendency of a suit filed by any parent. However, the matter should be decided within a period of six months as prescribed in Section 12A of the Act. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
