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The Supreme Court’s directions in Rajnesh v. Neha (4 November 2020) also recognize enforcement through the Hindu Marriage Act, the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, criminal-procedure provisions and civil execution, depending on the source of the order. The practical objective is to obtain money due while giving the court reliable evidence about the order, default, the respondent’s location and any salary or assets that can be reached.
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First identify what kind of order you hold
“Alimony” and “maintenance” can arise from different proceedings. The operative paragraph of the order—not the name used by the parties—determines the execution route, court and available remedies. Make a copy of the complete order and mark the paragraph that states the amount, start date, payment frequency, due date and any direction about arrears, interest or costs.
| Source of the order | Usual enforcement route identified by the Supreme Court | Important practical point |
|---|---|---|
| BNSS section 144 (formerly Code of Criminal Procedure section 125) | Application before a Magistrate for recovery; warrant to levy the amount as a fine; imprisonment after warrant execution for unpaid monthly allowance | Apply to levy a particular amount within one year from the date it became due |
| Hindu Marriage Act maintenance or alimony order | Enforcement under section 28A of the Hindu Marriage Act and, where appropriate, as a civil money decree | Check the matrimonial court’s execution practice and the relief granted in the decree |
| Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act order | Enforcement under section 20(6) of the Act; the issuing court may direct recovery and other permitted process | Use the order and the case number from the domestic-violence proceeding when seeking execution |
| Other matrimonial or civil decree | Civil execution under the Code of Civil Procedure, including Order XXI and sections 51, 55, 58 and 60 where applicable | The executing court’s powers depend on the wording and legal character of the decree |
In Rajnesh v. Neha, the Supreme Court directed that a maintenance order or decree may be enforced under section 28A of the Hindu Marriage Act, section 20(6) of the Domestic Violence Act, section 128 of the former Code of Criminal Procedure, as applicable, or as a civil money decree under the Code of Civil Procedure. For a new criminal-procedure application, BNSS sections 144 and 147 are the current provisions to discuss with the filing court.
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What BNSS sections 144 and 147 do
Section 144: recovery after default
BNSS section 144 covers maintenance for wives, children and parents. When the respondent fails to comply without sufficient cause, the Magistrate may issue a warrant to levy the amount due in the manner provided for levying fines. The section also permits a sentence of imprisonment of up to one month for the whole or part of each month’s allowance that remains unpaid after execution of the warrant.
The proviso is time-sensitive: an application to levy a particular amount must be made within one year from the date that amount became due. Treat each instalment as a separate line in your schedule. A missed deadline for a recovery application does not automatically answer every question about the continuing maintenance entitlement; courts distinguish the one-year recovery proviso from the underlying liability. Because local procedural decisions can affect older arrears, obtain advice on any instalment approaching or beyond one year rather than assuming it is either automatically recoverable or automatically extinguished.
Section 147: enforcement where the respondent is found
BNSS section 147 requires the enforcing Magistrate to be satisfied about the identity of the parties and the non-payment. It also provides that a copy of the maintenance or interim-maintenance order must be supplied without charge and that the order may be enforced by a Magistrate in any place where the person against whom it was made may be. This can matter when the respondent has moved after the original case.
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Step-by-step: prepare and file the execution application
1. Obtain the enforceable order and confirm its status
Use the signed or certified order available from the court record. Confirm whether it is final, interim, modified on appeal, stayed, or replaced by a later order. Read every operative direction, including:
- the monthly or one-time amount;
- the person entitled to receive it;
- the date from which it runs;
- the due date or payment interval;
- any direction for payment of past arrears;
- any provision for interest, litigation costs or adjustment; and
- the case number and parties’ names exactly as shown in the order.
If an appellate court has stayed or changed payment, attach that order and calculate only what remains enforceable. Do not rely on a verbal assurance that the order has been suspended.
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2. Build a month-by-month arrears ledger
Create a schedule that lets the judge verify the arithmetic without reconstructing it. Use one row for every instalment and retain the underlying bank record. Useful columns are:
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- date on which that instalment became due;
- amount ordered;
- amount actually received and date received;
- payment reference or bank statement page;
- balance remaining; and
- the date on which the one-year BNSS recovery period expires for that instalment.
Separate principal maintenance from interest, costs or other sums. Include interest or costs only when the order or a later enforceable direction grants them. If a payment was partial, credit it to the relevant instalment and explain your allocation. Sign and date the schedule, and attach a short calculation note so the court can test the total quickly.
3. Preserve proof of non-payment
Keep the documents that establish both entitlement and default:
- the order or decree and any later modification or stay order;
- bank statements for the account into which maintenance was to be paid;
- payment messages, transfer references, returned transfers and correspondence acknowledging a balance;
- prior execution applications, orders, warrants and service reports;
- documents showing the respondent’s identity and current address; and
- credible information about the respondent’s employer, salary account or identifiable assets.
Organize the evidence in the same order as the arrears ledger. Under section 147, the Magistrate must be satisfied about identity and non-payment, so an unexplained total or an untraceable payment history can delay enforcement.
4. Choose the forum and filing location
Begin with the court that issued the order and ask whether it will execute it directly. For a BNSS section 144 order, section 147 allows enforcement by a Magistrate in any place where the respondent may be, once identity and non-payment are established. If the respondent is now in another district or state, provide the current address and ask the registry or a lawyer to confirm the receiving Magistrate and method of transmitting or serving the process.
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For a Hindu Marriage Act, Domestic Violence Act or civil decree, the issuing Family Court, Magistrate or civil court may have a specific execution procedure. The Supreme Court’s Rajnesh v. Neha directions do not eliminate local filing rules. Verify the correct counter, number of copies, affidavit format, process fee and service method before presenting the papers.
5. State precise relief in the application
Identify each unpaid instalment and request relief that matches the source of the order. Depending on the case, the prayer may ask the court to:
- record the arrears shown in the attached schedule;
- issue a recovery warrant for the amount due under BNSS section 144;
- use the fine-recovery process permitted by the applicable provision;
- direct attachment of an identifiable salary, bank account or asset when the court has power to do so;
- enforce a civil decree under the applicable Code of Civil Procedure provisions; and
- grant any interest or costs expressly authorized by the order or execution law.
Do not ask for imprisonment as a substitute for the money claim. Under section 144, imprisonment is an enforcement mechanism after execution of the warrant; it does not erase the arrears. The application should continue to seek recovery of the unpaid amount.
6. Disclose every related maintenance proceeding
List all other cases between the parties, including interim and final maintenance orders, and state what has actually been paid under each. Attach orders and payment records where available. In Rajnesh v. Neha, the Supreme Court required an Affidavit of Disclosure of Assets and Liabilities in maintenance proceedings throughout India and directed courts to consider adjustment or set-off so that the same period is not recovered twice.
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Disclosure protects the applicant as well as the respondent: it lets the court distinguish a genuine shortfall from an amount already credited in another proceeding and reduces the risk of an execution order being challenged for double recovery.
7. Serve the respondent and attend the execution hearing
Give the court a usable address, workplace information and contact details for service. Keep every summons, notice, warrant and service report. At the hearing, bring the original ledger, bank records and the order copy, and be ready to explain any disputed credit, change in the monthly amount or period covered by a stay.
If the respondent appears and claims inability to pay, ask the court to record the evidence supporting that claim and to examine available salary or asset information. If the respondent does not appear, the court will still follow its service and warrant procedure; repeated non-appearance is not itself proof of the arrears, so maintain the documentary record.
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Can the court attach salary, bank funds or other assets?
Attachment is possible only through the powers applicable to the particular order and court. The Supreme Court has recognized that maintenance may be enforced as a civil money decree, using Code of Civil Procedure execution provisions including sections 51, 55, 58 and 60 and Order XXI, where that route applies. Case law has also accepted salary attachment as a possible recovery method when properly ordered.
Make an attachment request practical rather than general. Identify the employer, branch or asset, explain how the information was obtained, and state the amount still due after credits. The court may need to give notice, determine whether the asset is legally attachable, and protect exemptions or amounts that cannot be seized. An unsupported request to “attach everything” is less useful than a documented request directed at a known salary or asset.
Salary attachment
Provide the employer’s legal name, workplace address and, if lawfully available, payroll or employee details. Ask the executing court to determine the attachable portion and issue directions to the employer under the relevant execution procedure. Do not assume that a salary attachment order automatically covers future increases, bonuses or a different employer; the order’s wording controls.
Bank-account or property enforcement
Give the court specific account or property information and supporting documents. For property, distinguish ownership from mere occupation and identify the location and title particulars. For a bank account, provide the bank and branch and explain the basis for believing the account belongs to the respondent. The court—not the applicant—decides the lawful scope and sequence of attachment.
When can the respondent be sent to jail?
For a BNSS section 144 default, the Magistrate may issue a warrant to levy the amount as a fine. After execution of that warrant, the section permits imprisonment of up to one month for the whole or part of each month’s allowance that remains unpaid. The wording links imprisonment to the unpaid monthly allowance and the warrant process; it is not an automatic first step merely because a payment was late.
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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchAsk for both recovery and any coercive relief the statute permits. Imprisonment does not convert the arrears into a paid balance, and release does not provide the applicant with the unpaid money. The court may examine sufficient cause, payments made, service and the calculation before deciding what process is justified.
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What if the respondent moved or the address is unknown?
Use the most recent reliable address, employer details and information about where the respondent is ordinarily found. Section 147 permits enforcement by a Magistrate in any place where the person against whom the order was made may be, subject to the court’s satisfaction about identity and non-payment. Ask the local registry how an order from another district should be filed and served.
Document every reasonable service attempt. Returned notices, incorrect addresses and missing identity details can postpone a warrant. If you discover a new address, employer or location after filing, place that information on the record promptly rather than starting an unnecessary second case.
How to handle older arrears and partial payments
Apply within the BNSS time window
For each amount claimed under section 144, calculate the date it became due and the one-year deadline for an application to levy that amount. File before the earliest deadline when possible. Present older instalments separately and ask for advice on how the local court treats the continuing maintenance liability and the recovery proviso.
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Credit every payment accurately
Reconcile the ledger with bank records and written acknowledgements. If the respondent paid directly in cash, preserve a receipt, message or other reliable proof. Never claim the full ordered amount for a month in which a payment was received; explain the remaining balance instead.
Separate maintenance from other financial disputes
An execution application is not a substitute for a property, child-custody or damages claim. Include only sums covered by the enforceable order and use the appropriate proceeding for a separate dispute. This keeps the arrears calculation within the executing court’s jurisdiction.
Common mistakes that delay enforcement
- Filing under the wrong statute: A Domestic Violence Act order, a Hindu Marriage Act decree and a BNSS order do not necessarily use the same form or court. Quote the source provision and attach the operative order.
- Waiting past a deadline: The section 144 proviso requires an application for a particular amount within one year after it becomes due. Track each instalment independently.
- Submitting a lump-sum figure: A month-by-month ledger with payment credits is easier to verify than a single unexplained total.
- Relying on an uncertified or incomplete order: Include the operative pages and any modification, stay or appellate order.
- Ignoring other proceedings: Failure to disclose another award can produce a set-off, adjournment or challenge for double recovery.
- Asking only for jail: Imprisonment is coercive process; seek recovery of the money and identify attachable salary or assets.
- Using stale address information: Service problems are avoidable when the application includes the respondent’s current location and workplace.
- Assuming uniform local procedure: Forms, filing counters, copies, fees and scheduling vary by district. Confirm them with the court registry, legal-aid office or a qualified family-law advocate.
A filing checklist
Before filing, assemble a single indexed bundle containing:
- the order or decree and every later modification, stay or appellate direction;
- a signed arrears ledger showing each due date, ordered amount, payment and balance;
- bank statements and other proof supporting non-payment;
- identity and address information for both parties;
- the case number and details of every related maintenance proceeding;
- the respondent’s employer, salary or asset information, if reliably known;
- proof of earlier service and execution attempts;
- an affidavit or disclosure required by the local court; and
- a prayer specifying recovery, attachment or other relief available under the order’s source statute.
Take copies in the number the registry requires and keep a stamped filing copy. Record the next hearing date and check whether the court requires a separate process-fee deposit or service set.
Getting help without losing control of the case
A Family Court or Magistrate clerk can confirm the filing counter and local forms but cannot provide legal strategy. A legal-aid office or qualified family-law advocate can help classify the order, calculate the one-year periods, frame an attachment request and address overlapping awards. Bring the complete order, ledger and bank proof to the consultation. Ask specifically which court will execute the order, which instalments remain within time, and what evidence is needed to identify the respondent’s salary or assets.
The strongest execution application is narrow and verifiable: it cites the correct legal source, lists each unpaid instalment, proves the default, discloses related orders, and requests a recovery method the court can actually implement. Local procedure determines the final form, but careful preparation prevents the most common avoidable delays.
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