Gender Equality in Maintenance Laws: A Comparative Analysis of Legal Frameworks

Indian maintenance laws are governed by two different legal systems: religion-specific personal law and universal secular law. This raises an important question of gender equality and uniformity of legal rights. The secular law is considered to be more impartial and progressive than the personal laws, as they apply regardless of religion, yet Hindu personal law takes a more gender balanced approach, whereas the secular law limits the right to seek maintenance only to wives. Through analysis of statutory provisions such as the Hindu Marriage Act 1955, and the Special Marriage Act 1954, together with leading judicial decisions, this paper explores the apparent contradiction and contrasting approaches between secular and personal law governing maintenance in India. The paper tries to understand the extent to which these laws uphold gender equality; it questions whether secularism necessarily ensures greater gender equality within maintenance laws.