In a child maintenance Lahore High Court ruling, Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani raised the monthly amount for each minor child from Rs20,000 to Rs30,000 and ordered a 10 percent annual increase to be calculated from 2019. The decision followed a petition by a woman who sought higher maintenance for her minor children.
The court told the trial court to work out outstanding payments using that annual increase. It also upheld an earlier order that gave the mother Rs15,000 a month during her iddat period—the waiting period after divorce under Muslim personal law—and Rs280,000 as compensation for dowry items.
How the court set the new amount
The child maintenance Lahore High Court order stressed that the sum must reflect the children’s education, upbringing and basic needs, alongside the father’s financial capacity. The court repeated, citing an earlier Supreme Court ruling, that a father’s duty to support his children continues after divorce, whether or not they live with their mother.
During the case, the mother argued that the father was a British citizen and could pay more. He said his monthly income in the United Kingdom was between £500 and £600. The court noted that living in the UK does not by itself prove what someone earns. Capacity, it said, must be judged from the nature of his work, employment details and the evidence on record.
Proof of income and arrears
Claims of low income cannot be accepted without documents such as salary slips, the court made clear. That point matters for how trial courts test what a parent can actually pay when fixing maintenance.
On arrears, the direction is practical: the trial court must recalculate what is owed in line with the 10 percent yearly rise from 2019, then apply the new Rs30,000 monthly figure going forward for each minor child covered by the order.
What the ruling does not settle alone
This child maintenance Lahore High Court decision turns on the facts and evidence before Justice Kayani. It does not replace every past maintenance order nationwide. Other families will still need their own petitions, evidence of need and income, and trial-court calculations if they seek a similar increase or arrears review.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Lahore High Court ne har bachay ka mahana kharcha Rs20,000 se barha kar Rs30,000 kar diya hai. Saath mein 2019 se har saal 10 percent izafa bhi shumar hoga, aur baqi raqam trial court nikalegi. Talaq ke baad bhi baap par bachon ka kharcha lazim rehta hai, lekin kamai ka daawa proof ke baghair nahi chalega. Walidain ke liye ye faisla tab asar karega jab un ke case mein aisa order ho ya woh court se review mangain.
