Woman refuses to accept Rs 55K in coins as alimony

Jaipur: A case related alimony at a family court in Jaipur took an interesting turn after a woman refused to accept maintenance fee worth Rs 55,000 paid by her estranged husband in Re 1 and Rs 2 coins!

On June 17, the court had allowed a Jaipur vendor to pay Rs 55,000 in coins to his estranged wife as maintenance dues for 11 months after counting the coins and making 55 packets of Rs 1,000 each.

In her plea, Seema Kumawat said on Monday, “As per the law, transaction of coins over Rs 1,000 is not legal. So the court should help me Rs 55,000 in currency notes.”

The court has listed the matter for next hearing on July 5.

Seema’s lawyer Ramprakash Kumawat told mediapersons that if her husband Dashrath Kumawat fails to make the payment, he should be sent behind bars. On June 17, Dashrath had claimed that coins are legal tender, and hence they should be accepted as alimony by his estranged wife.

The court at that time had fixed June 26 as the next date of hearing.

Seema and Dashrath were married 12 years back. However, after a few years, they filed for divorce. The family court had directed Dashrath to pay Seema Rs 5,000 per month as maintenance fee.

However, Dashrath didn’t pay her for the last 11 months. Hence the court issued a recovery warrant which was later converted into an arrest warrant.

When Dashrath and presented before the court, he brought coins worth Rs 55,000.

Dashrath said he has a grocery store and his customers mostly pay him in coins and that is why he has such a large collection of coins.

“As there were no alternatives to pay the maintenance fee, I counted the coins, packed them in different bags, and hired a vehicle to reach the court,” he had said.