April 21, 2025
Staff Report
LAHORE
A Senate sub-committee has approved the Family Courts (Amendment) Bill, 2024, which requires family courts to “fix interim monthly maintenance for wife or a child” at the defendant’s first court appearance.
The bill, having cleared its initial legislative stage, will now move to the relevant standing committee for review before being voted on in the Senate and the National Assembly. The bill would be enforceable in the Islamabad Capital Territory alone.
A sub-committee of the Senate Standing Committee on Law and Justice approved the bill in its meeting at Parliament House in Islamabad on April 14. The meeting, chaired by Senator Zamir Hussain Ghumro, endorsed the bill, introduced by Senator Samina Mumtaz Zehri on September 9, 2024. The proposed amendments to the Family Courts Act, 1964 aim to address the financial struggles of women and children during lengthy divorce cases.
Key provisions of the bill
The bill empowers family courts to set maintenance amounts higher than those requested in the plaint, considering factors like inflation or other relevant circumstances. “If the defendant fails to pay the maintenance by the fourteenth of each month, the defence of the defendant shall stand struck off, and the Family Court shall decree the suit for maintenance on the basis of averments in the plaint and other supporting documents.” reads the proposed bill.
The proposed bill also prescribes an annual increase in maintenance; if not specified, the amount will automatically rise by 10% each year.
Courts may “fix an amount of maintenance higher than the amount prayed for in the plaint due to afflux of time or any other relevant circumstances.”
To determine fair maintenance, courts must assess the defendant’s financial status by examining “estate and resources as defined under Sections 11 and 39 of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001,” including income from property, business, dividends, and other sources.
Conduct inquiries into the defendant’s estate and resources, leveraging Sections 11 and 39 of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001 to ensure fair assessments.
Committee’s discussion
Senator Zehri highlighted that 90% of women in Pakistan lack independent income, making delays in maintenance rulings devastating. “The State shall protect the marriage, the family, the mother and the child,” she said, quoting Article 35 of the Constitution, emphasizing the bill’s alignment with constitutional safeguards.
The Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Law and Justice noted that Punjab has already implemented similar measures, though the federal bill’s scope is limited to Islamabad. Senator Ghumro stressed that “failure to ensure financial support during divorce proceedings harms vulnerable families and weakens social protections.”
Senator Anusha Rahman Ahmad Khan praised the bill as a “critical step toward protecting women’s rights” and urged further reforms. The bill now moves forward for final approval, aiming to expedite financial relief for divorced women and children.