Recently, the Allahabad High Court has ruled that a moral obligation cannot be enforced as a legal duty, and dismissed an elderly couple’s plea seeking maintenance from their daughter-in-law after their son’s death.

In the said matter, the couple challenged a family court order that had rejected their petition in August last year.

In its plea, the couple submitted that they are old, illiterate, and were financially dependent on their son, a constable in the Uttar Pradesh Police. Their son married in 2016 and died in 2021, while his wife continues to serve as a constable.

During the hearing, the couple argued that their daughter-in-law earns independently and received service benefits after their son’s death. On this basis, they urged the court to treat her moral responsibility to support them as a legal obligation.

The daughter-in-law opposed the plea, arguing that the family court had already decided the matter and did not require interference.

The High Court examined Section 144 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and clarified that the provision applies only to a dependent wife, children, and parents. It does not include parents-in-law within its scope.

Justice Madan Pal Singh, in his February 4 order, held that the legislature has consciously excluded parents-in-law from the ambit of maintenance claims under this provision. The court also noted that there was no material to show that the woman secured her job on compassionate grounds.

Emphasising the legal position, the court stated that maintenance can be granted only to those categories expressly mentioned in the statute. Since parents-in-law do not fall within that category, the court upheld the family court’s order and dismissed the petition