Despite financial difficulties, LHC supports a father’s obligation to provide for his underage child.

The Lahore High Court has held that a father cannot escape from his need to provide maintenance to his young kid due to financial hardships, saying that the obligation is enforceable under legal, moral and religious standards.

Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani stated in a lengthy 15-page opinion that the obligation of the father to support his young child is continuing and cannot be done away with owing to financial difficulties. The court ruled that the obligation is more than a legal obligation but also a moral and religious one.

The court said that a minor child’s claim to maintenance cannot be waived by a consent or settlement. Any such arrangement to reduce or remove such rights is not viable in law, said the court.

The court also found that the unpaid support is an enforceable liability owed by the father and does not just expire over time. The verdict quoted the provisions from the Holy Quran including Surah Al-Baqarah, Surah At-Talaq and related teachings from Sunnah.

The court noted that the youngster involved in the case, Naseer Akhtar Awan, was living with a disability when a settlement agreement was entered into and so, his legal rights could not be bartered away through any private arrangement.

Lahore High Court upheld the verdicts of the family court and appellate court and rejected the plea of the father against the maintenance demand.

The court also proposed new legislation on recovery of past maintenance in view of Islamic legal principles and directed to send a copy of the judgment to the Law and Justice Commission and the Ministry of Law and Justice.

Petitioner Akhtar Hussain Awan contended that a settlement agreement was signed in 2005 which had already fixed the lifelong maintenance dues. He further maintained that the law did not provide for recovery of maintenance for the period that had elapsed beyond six years. He also prayed for imposition of penalty on the mother of the child for breach of the agreement.

However, the court dismissed these arguments and reiterated the legal protections given to underage children in matters pertaining to maintenance and financial assistance.