In India, women had full equality (at least legally) and unified respect. However, in modern culture, women are using the very legislation that was designed to protect them as a weapon instead of a shield by making false accusations under its provisions and threatening their husbands under the decree. There is no way out of this swamp for man. Because men do not have adequate laws to protect them.

And man must overcome obstacles in order to establish his innocence. Being a male does not imply that he did anything wrong and that he must shoulder all expenditures and pay maintenance without being at fault. Our court operates under the guiding philosophy "let a hundred guilty be acquitted, but one innocent be convicted." So, why is not our government paying attention to the current situation?

Society need an atmosphere in which men may openly report incidents without fear of being ridiculed. This paper will also address how Indian alimony laws are being utilized for purposes other than what they were intended for and how they are prejudiced towards one gender.

Introduction
In recent years, alimony has been painted as the largest problem for Indian males. But is not alimony the last line of defense most women have left, given how society views marriages and the pervasive gender divide? The requirement for child support and maintenance is ably reaffirmed by this Supreme Court decision. Today, women are harmed by alimony, which was originally seen as a feminist victory since it helped women who otherwise had little financial options.

It is difficult for men who were equally in unhappy marriages and now have the added responsibility of supporting this ex-spouse for life to receive a type of guaranteed permanent maintenance. Women should not rely on a male partner for the rest of their lives because jobs are accessible to both sexes in today's environment. Supporting a child is very different from supporting a spouse who could work if she wanted to and obtain insurance-covered childcare for the child.[1]

Today, there are more divorces involving women in India than there were in the past[2]. The reasons for this include fake cases brought about by the abuse of laws that discriminate against women, fake feminism, and the exploitation of these laws by legislators and supporters to make quick money. Due to free money received in the form of alimony and maintenance, divorced women typically have the most secure financial situations.

Given that marriage provides a fixed, non-diminishing source of income for women, divorce is preferred in India by women over refusing to get married. There are numerous examples where women opt to be married and then leave the marital house in a very short amount of time, filing fictitious cases of dowry, domestic abuse, etc. to obtain money under the guise of maintenance, compensation, or alimony in order to enjoy singlehood with unlimited income.

In reality, women today are avoiding their obligations as mothers, daughters-in-law, and wives. Today's women are extremely averse to taking on responsibility. The major goal is to remain single without being burdened by obligations and to take advantage of cheap money. The government, politicians, and false feminists are backing them by enacting more gender biased legislation and taking no action against bogus cases. These women use men and their families as punching bags to satiate their maladaptive psychological demands.[3]

According to information obtained through a RTI Act request, the conviction rate for the High Court of Karnataka has never been higher than 4.24%[4], meaning that only a very small percentage of cases were actually true. And the remainder were made up cases that were filed with the bad goal of harassing wives and their families in order to satisfy their psychologically unhealthy desires.

This paper further aims to delve into the history of alimony then relevance and economic justification of alimony then the researcher will discuss evolution of divorce and alimony then the same in Indian context, then the researcher will discuss gender biased alimony system in India, further the researcher will conclude the paper with a conclusion followed by some suggestions.

History
Due to the rarity of divorce, the fact that husband and wife continued to be legally married even after their physical separation, and the husband's continuing duty to provide for his wife, alimony developed traditionally as a consequence of the inseparable nature of marriage. Many communities still recognized the necessity for the wife to be maintained after a marriage has ended, at least temporarily, while divorce rates increased.

The earliest societies to require maintenance were the Egyptians, Greeks, and Hebrews. Conflicts with the separated wife's family were avoided thanks to the procedure. The origins of alimony may be found in the Babylonian Code of Hammurabi, which stipulates that if a husband divorces his wife without paying alimony, he must instead give her a piece of silver. Further it included laws governing marriage, one of which stipulated that if a couple got divorced, the male had to return the dowry, grant his ex-wife custody of any children, and provide her a stipend to support her and their kids.

The male must still repay the dowry and give his ex-wife what would be considered a "bride price" even if there were no children. "Bride price", also known as bride wealth in the past, is the "sum of money", "a piece of property", or other assets given to a woman's parents in exchange for their consent to allow their daughter to marry. The dowry and this price would be given back to the ex-wife.[5]

The Code of Justinian, which subsequently served as the foundation for both Roman law and British common law, also mentions alimony in the context of Roman law under Justinian I. It states that the spouse might claim gold from the guilty spouse in the event of a divorce. In the framework of marriage by habit and repute, in which a couple is regarded legally married and is entitled to all rights and advantages resulting from that marriage while not formally registering their union, this legislation concerns alimony.[6]

A time when married couples could only acquire a legal separation and divorce was not an option gave rise to alimony in the English ecclesiastical courts. The husband was still legally required to support his wife even though they were no longer living together since they were still legally married.

The English ecclesiastical courts, which granted alimony in separation and divorce cases, are where the current idea of alimony originated in the United States. Based on the husband's obligation to support the woman throughout a marriage, alimony pendente lite was paid until the divorce judgment was finalized.

Since ecclesiastical courts could only grant a divorce a mensa et thora, post-divorce or perpetual alimony was similarly predicated on the idea that the marriage endured. This term refers to a divorce, which is really more of a court-granted separation in which a husband and wife are no longer required by law to cohabitate but whose marriage has not yet ended. Therefore, the husband's obligation to provide for his wife was upheld.[7]

Moreover, divorce in this nation was previously entirely blame-based, so a woman could only receive alimony from her ex-husband if it was determined that he was to blame for the divorce. Furthermore, alimony judgments in fault-based countries were made based on the level of fault and preservation of status.

Relevance Of Alimony

Marriage marks the beginning of a partnership that society expects to continue forever. However, because to the partners' personal troubles, which eventually interrupt their lives and make them unpleasant, this partnership does not always work out as anticipated. In these cases, such persons have profited from divorce by formally separating from their marriage. Divorce is the legal procedure to dissolve a partnership, and it requires both parties' permission.

The financially stronger party will often offer cash compensation in order for the financially weaker party to continue living at the same standard of living after the divorce. During the course of a marriage, one of the parties, usually the wives, may have given up on their professional life in order to care for the household, whereas the other party, the men, may have developed professionally over time, whereas after a divorce, a woman must rebuild her life from the ground up. He may be the managing director in twenty years, while his wife may begin her career as a secretary since she lacks professional experience.

Alimony therefore guarantees that both couples can meet their financial needs. If one spouse worked unpaid labor throughout the marriage, such as childcare or housework, they will not be "empty handed" after the marriage thanks to alimony. And it stops one spouse from devoting years of their life to the marriage at the expense of their own professional advancement, only to be unexpectedly forced into the job.

These issues are typically faced by couples who have raised children throughout their marriage when one spouse elected to stay at home with the children while the other was solely responsible for working and supporting the family.

The Economic Justification For Alimony

The economic justification considers alimony principally as a method of promoting effective conduct throughout marriage, in contrast to traditional theories of alimony, which place emphasis on attaining distributive fairness between divorced spouses.

Two characteristics of a normative economic approach to law are incorporated into this efficiency justification. First, in order to assess the effects and attractiveness of alternative legal regimes, it employs an ex-ante rather than an ex-post approach. Second, it asserts that the primary goal of laws should be efficiency, or wealth maximization.[8]

Three underlying presumptions form the basis of the efficiency argument in support of alimony. First, efficiency theorists presumptively believe that married people, like other sane people, want to maximize their own wellbeing. Second, these theories contend that individuals optimize their own welfare by creating and acquiring commodities.

Therefore, efficiency theory views marriage as a husband-wife partnership in which both individuals want to optimize their respective contributions to the production of commodities.

These commodities range from so-called "household commodities" like home-cooked meals and quality family time to more conventional indicators of market prosperity like income and tangible possessions. The ability of one or both spouses to create income or other goods in the future is improved by personal assets, which economists refer to as investments in human capital.

Efficiency theorists employ the concept of comparative advantage to claim that specialization within marriage enables spouses to optimize their combined production of market and nonmarket goods, which is third and maybe most significant for the economic basis for alimony.

According to this idea, individuals of a household (or of an organization) should allocate their resources to various tasks in accordance with their comparative or relative efficiency in those tasks in order to optimize total productivity. Married people will maximize their joint production of goods-and for efficiency theorists, their overall well-being-by having each spouse specialize in the productive sector for which he or she is comparably better suited. This is similar to how businesses increase their output, and therefore their productivity, by having employees specialize in specific tasks or aspects of the businesses.[9]

Evolution Of Divorce And Alimony

Even though the fault-based divorce system actually rarely enforced alimony in practice, it made sense in principle. Since divorce was only a possibility in circumstances where one spouse had broken their marital obligations, alimony acted as a type of damages remedy for breach of the state-imposed marriage contract.

Additionally, because the contract was obviously based on gender and assigned all support responsibilities to men, only wives were qualified for alimony in the event of a divorce. Alternately, under the fault-based system, alimony may be justified as making up damages for the conduct of the "guilty" spouse, and a divorce may be seen as a particular category of tort action.[10]

The advent of no-fault divorce and the abolition of the state-mandated marriage contract have gravely undermined these traditional arguments for alimony. Since divorce no longer required proof of fault or a breach, a damage remedy seemed out of place. Due to the fact that marital responsibilities were no longer strictly gender-based, an alimony remedy that was based on the husband's need to provide for his wife and was only open to her appeared unjust and out of date.

Furthermore, the no-fault system was more focused on carrying out one or both couples' wishes to end their marriage than the fault-based system, which placed a greater emphasis on sustaining the marital unit. Since there was no longer a societal pressure to maintain the marriage, it became challenging to defend financial obligations that endured divorce.

As a result of divorce reform, alimony has been reduced to a theoretical void. Initially, reformers attempted to close the gap by redefining alimony as a brief transitional payment intended to assist former dependent spouses in becoming financially independent as soon as possible. To do this, a number of nations' trial courts generally replaced interim "rehabilitative" payments for so-called permanent alimony. The emphasis of the reformers on ensuring a clear financial separation between separated couples corresponded with the shift from open-ended to term-limited compensation. [11]

Alimony: Status And Evolution In India

In just about all scenarios, alimony is issued when a spouse is unable to meet his or her basic necessities. However, according to Indian alimony statutes, it can be granted to either spouse, in the majority of cases, it is awarded to the woman by her husband. In India, there are two sorts of alimony: "interim maintenance", which is paid while the court processes are ongoing, and final maintenance, which is paid at the moment of formal separation and "Permanent Maintenance", that is generally granted on-time following the conclusion of the proceedings.[12]

"Very few laws in the country provide any support for men in this regard," explains advocate Siji Malayil. Because of India's religious variety, each religious group operates under its own personal law, which is based on religious texts, customs, and traditions.

Because alimony law is derived from personal laws, the grounds for claiming alimony vary from community to community. Despite the fact that the Indian Constitution recognizes men and women as equals, the country nevertheless has several regulations that are biased against one gender and are frequently misapplied.[13]

Given that many of these laws were created centuries back, it is time for others, such as the Special Marriage Act of 1954[14] in the nation, to include provisions allowing both genders to equally claim alimony. The British, for example, shaped the Indian Christian Marriage Act in 1872 based on their rules.[15]

Women did not have the right to own properties before then, thus paying maintenance made little sense. But things have changed a lot since then. While the original legislation has been amended in the United Kingdom, it is now time for India to do the same.

Subsequently, when we talk about the evolution of the alimony system The Hon. Supreme Court observed that Section 3(b) of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956, would clearly indicate that the legislature intended for the provision of "food, clothing, housing, and other necessities" to constitute real maintenance rather than bare or starving maintenance in the case of Ruma Chakraborty vs. Sudha Rani Benarjee[16].

The legislature's intent is further evident from the words "also the reasonable expenses of" found in clause (ii) of Section 3(b) of the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act, which clearly indicates that an unmarried daughter is also entitled to the costs associated with an incident to her marriage in addition to the expenses of "food, clothing, residence", etc.[17]

The title and language of Section 23 of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956, which discusses maintenance amount, make the aim of the legislator utterly apparent and straightforward. Therefore, it is appropriate to infer that Section 23 of the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act makes explicit what is implied under Section 3. [18]

In Rajesh Burman v. Mitul Chatterjee[19], the Supreme Court notes that the terms "maintenance" and "support" are defined as include means of subsistence, "food, clothing, housing, recreation, health, proper care, nursing, and medical help in times of illness". The Court further noted that previous rulings of the court had made it apparent that "maintenance" and "support" were identical and comprised the "act of maintaining," which included housing, food, leisure, education, and medical care.

According to the 1956 Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act[20], a Hindu wife who has a valid reason to live apart from her husband is allowed to do so without losing her right to maintenance. The wife has the right to seek dissolution of the marriage as well as maintenance until she remarries under section 2(ii) of the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act 1939[21], despite the fact that the Hindu Law provides for a separate residence for the wife under such circumstances when a Muslim husband fails or neglects to provide for his wife for a specific period of time.

Generally speaking, the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986[22] was passed by the Indian Parliament in 1986 in order to override the Supreme Court's ruling in the Shah Bano Begum case[23]. However regrettably, there are still certain errors in legislation and its application that need to be investigated and resolved by the majority of High Courts and the Supreme Court.

The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act of 1986[24] was upheld as constitutional in Daniel Latifa's case by the Supreme Court in 2001[25]. The court found that the remedy provided therein served a purpose and would otherwise be addressed by Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure[26]. It also found that personal law was a reasonable basis for classification. However, the question of whether the 1986 Act's remedy is actually appropriate and reasonable is still up for debate.

The phrase "Difficulties of a litigant in India begin when he has obtained a decree" perfectly captures the current state of affairs with relation to the execution of judgments and decisions in our nation[27]. Due to this, matrimonial courts have discovered other methods for implementing the rulings. But are these methods sufficient to provide help to the poor?

The "welfare of the children" is given highest priority by the court while deciding on temporary and permanent alimony orders. It is proposed that the age limit for children claiming maintenance be raised until the child completes his or her education and is able to earn money in accordance with his or her qualification in order to cover the significant costs associated with obtaining professional degrees and higher education.

The remedy provided for in Section 18 of the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act[28] is essentially rendered ineffective by the payment of a sizable court fee, hence prompt legislative action is required to alleviate the circumstances. Legislators should set explicit rules to protect the rights of women who have been "duped" into second marriages in order to provide them some reprieve from their deceivers since the issue of second wife maintenance is quite serious.

Both Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973[29] and the personal laws extend to the idea of maintenance in India. This idea is further supported by Article 15(3) and Article 39 of the 1950 Indian Constitution[30]. When a man 's wife, kids, and parents are unable to care for themselves, it is both a measure of social fairness and the inherent obligation of a man to provide for them. Preventing immorality and poverty while improving the economic standing of women and children is the goal of upkeep.

Hindu laws are applicable to all individuals who are Hindu by religion and include members of "Hindu, Sikh, Jain, and Buddhist communities". These laws are also applicable on an individual who is not a "Christian, Muslim, Jew or a Parsi and is not governed by any other personal laws"[31] and the sum of alimony that a husband must give to his wife is not decided by a fixed formula or set rule. Both a regular monthly payment and a one-time lump amount are acceptable forms of alimony.

The woman will still be given alimony to enable her to maintain the same standard of living as her husband even if she works but her net earnings are much lower than those of her husband. If the woman is not employed, the court will consider her age, educational background, and earning potential while deciding how much alimony to award.

 The husband receives alimony from the court if the wife works and the husband is disabled. There are several disagreements about whether a working person in India may request alimony. According to the law, a worker is entitled to the same wages and benefits that she got when dwelling in their marital house. The drafting Panel is responsible for understanding divorce maintenance.

The amount to be given to the wife in the event of ongoing alimony payments has been standardized by the Indian Supreme Court at 25% of the husband's net monthly income. However, a one-time payment is often between 5% and 30% of the husband's net wealth, but this is not a requirement. When determining alimony, the court takes a variety of factors into account.[32]

There are certain factors that are taken into consideration by the court while computing the alimony amount.

Alimony: Status And Evolution In India

Such factors may be varied and may include the following: Alimony: Status And Evolution In India

• Husband and wife's earnings and other assets, if any;
• In order to determine the husband's net income, mandatory deductions like income tax, EMIs, loan repayments, etc. are taken into account.
• The husband's obligations, such as supporting parents
• The parties' social standing and way of life;
• Their ages and physical conditions;
• The length of their marriage; and
• The cost of educating and raising the child or children.

Some of the evidence needed to prove that alimony is required for a particular party are:

• You must first establish that you cannot support yourself financially without the alimony in order to be eligible to receive it. You can demonstrate this by providing details about your monthly costs, sources of income and property, etc
• You must also present photocopies of your husband's income tax records and pay stubs as evidence of his wages.
• If the spouse has a business, you must produce his balance sheet and profit and loss statement.
• You can provide medical records, such as reports, as proof if you have dependents to care for, such as "parents or kids who need medical attention".
• The cost of the child's upkeep must be factored into the alimony payment if they will be living with you.

The standards for divorce maintenance and alimony are the same for both spouses, and the wealthy spouse is expected to assist the financially weaker spouse. According to the divorce alimony calculator in India, this is primarily done to guarantee that a couple has a higher quality of life.

Gender Biased Alimony System In India

Sadly, when it comes to the Indian constitution, the equality of both genders that we all talk about is not at all realistic. It's true that the government once had to include specific clauses in the constitution to protect women's equality, but it's also true that some of these clauses obviously discriminate against males. For instance, Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 defines maintenance in India and outlines other individual laws that extend the right to maintenance to the wife's parents and children in addition to her.

Maintenance is an aspect of social justice in and of itself. As long as his wife, kids, and parents cannot care for themselves, it is seen to be a man's inherent obligation to provide for them. Women are emancipating themselves from the patriarchal chains and asserting their equality in society, so they should also be held accountable for paying maintenance to their husbands in cases where they are unable to support themselves. They are also demanding gender equality in all maintenance laws. The law of maintenance was originally intended to place a major responsibility on the MALE to support their dependents.

Even while the Hindu Marriage and Adoption Act purports to be gender-neutral, all other laws, including Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code and the Hindu Marriage and Adoption Act, are still discriminatory towards males and require them to support their wives and children. According to Section 125 of the CrPC, there is legitimate bias based on gender with no functional distinction, particularly with regard to the assumption that a husband, father, or son has the capacity to support his dependents if he is healthy and competent.

Through its judicial activism, our judiciary has assumed a leadership role in promoting gender equality and neutrality; as a result, gender justice must be provided for both equitably and without prejudice or partiality. Because only males are responsible for paying maintenance, it has been petitioned that Section 125 CrPC be ruled unconstitutional and in violation of Article 14. On the other hand, it is hoped that Article 125 would be interpreted liberally to prevent gender discrimination. Since it is not always the case that males are to blame and women are the sufferers, laws should treat both genders equally.

Although Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code has made a laudable effort to execute maintenance orders, the section is primarily supported by a moral obligation that a person with sufficient resources be committed to his or her dependents. It may be inferred that Section 125 is gender-neutral whenever it comes to parental maintenance but gender-biased when it comes to spouse maintenance.

The laws that address gender disparity do not take into account the abuse that males experience, which can range from financial to sexual. In India, the frequency of false accusations following a divorce, when the woman feels mistreated, is rising daily. Men who face these degrading accusations are left with little legal protection, which drives them to drastic steps like suicide.

According to the Marriage Amendment Act of 2000, a woman who divorces her husband must be paid maintenance. Sometimes highly educated women have a tendency to conceal the fact that they are actively employed while yet requesting maintenance[33]. If not, the spouse might be charged with a crime. The nation must find a balance between the rising crime perpetrated by women and the high rate of crime against women in order to prevent upsetting equality and ensuring that it is accurately defined by fusing with humanism.

When highly educated women reject gender neutral legislation, the question arises, "Is gender neutrality anti-feminism?" The simple answer is NO! The Oxford Dictionary[34] describes feminism as the support of women's rights based on gender equality. Feminism was necessary at times because women were oppressed by cruel patriarchal policies. "The idea that women were oppressed throughout history is an appalling theory", However, the situation has altered today. Women have equal rights and, without a doubt, more legal protections.

As previously said, our laws are utilized as a weapon against men and their families. They're utilized to settle grudges and exact vengeance. Since "equality is at the heart of feminism", we can all agree that gender neutrality is the first step toward achieving it, and therefore implementing Article 14 of the Constitution in its genuine sense. As a result, gender neutrality is not incompatible with feminism. It instead attempts to realize the feminist goal of equality!

Before moving on with any more feminism, we must address the following questions: Is it fair to protect one sex at the expense of the other? , Are these pro-women legislation actually benefiting women? Or are we still dragging them and the country backwards by repeatedly reminding them that they are weak and hence require these extra benefits? , How does limiting boys and men help women? Rather than creating an imbalanced society, we need to raise legal understanding and awareness of women's rights among the impoverished and uneducated in communities and support the true victims!

Nowadays, there is a new tendency in the name of EQUALITY in which a female marries a guy and after a few years of marriage falsely accuses him and files many cases under domestic abuse, 498A, 125 for maintenance, and 406 to get jewelry. In most situations, the husband's family is also implicated. As a result, the family is summoned, resulting in harassment. The family eventually settles the matter with large amounts and obtains a divorce. Currently, the legislation serves as a haven for extortion. Many incidents follow a similar path[35].

"75% of cases are withdrawn because the women use the charges to extort money," said Wasif Ali of the Save Family Foundation, a men's rights organization that provides counseling and legal support to "distressed men" charged under this and other laws. "Even among the 15% convicted, many would-be innocent." India is frequently chastised for its deplorable treatment of women, but it has never considered women bothering men. The privilege granted to women must be amended to safeguard males as well. A system in which women are safeguarded and men are not hounded with bogus claims is urgently needed.

Conclusion
Over the past few decades, alimony in India has changed. A number of significant cases have changed how alimony is handled. Most of the time, women are entitled to alimony privileges. There have been several changes made to balance alimony payers and recipients. In the past, who was eligible for alimony was based on which partner had the greater financial standing. The partner who is stronger must make up for all the lost comfort for the partner who is weaker.

The working woman should now also be eligible for alimony, it was recently adjudicated. Its foundation is the concept that a woman deserves more respect and that her husband must provide for her. In addition, a wife with a regular income was required to get alimony from a husband who did not have a job. With the right understanding of divorce and alimony rules, it empowers all parties engaged in a divorce and results in a stress-free separation. However, this has been a target for exploitation in many situations throughout the world. It also provides aid to people who, because of their illnesses, are unable to sustain or maintain themselves.

The "right to equality" is outlined in Article 14 of the Indian Constitution, which states that everyone has the same status regardless of whatever differences they may have. Therefore, it is crucial to provide everyone with equal justice, whether they are male, female, or transgender. But sadly, India lacks any legal protections for males against any form of sexual harassment done by a woman.

Our criminal laws should be amended as needed to cover and forbid any kind of violence against males. It is best to refer to domestic violence as "spousal violence" and avoid making any distinctions based on gender. There should be a legislation that defines any untrue allegations of dowry or assault. Men should report any acts of violence or harassment they experience and must not be dissuaded in any way from doing so.

It is crucial to realize that sexual harassment has nothing to do with the victim's gender and is just about imposing power on the other. By adding measures and sections to The Indian Penal Code that punish such harassment against males, it is urgently necessary to safeguard men from sexual harassment.

The National Commission for Women, a statutory organization of the Indian government, has been formed to advise the government on issues affecting women. Our country requires a central organization for males along the lines of NCW, and it is past time for it to be founded. As statistics reveal, males require assistance in combating false allegations and improper use of the law by women. Purush Ayog, or the National Men's Commission, might be the first step toward creating a society with gender-neutral laws and practices that consider all victims as equals and all offenders as criminals, regardless of gender.

The Judiciary and the Legislature must guarantee that these sexual harassment statutes are not abused, resulting in bogus accusations of violence against males. It is crucial that the Indian legislative transform rape and sexual harassment laws into gender-neutral offenses, and our government must put more of an emphasis on sexual harassment of males than on any other offenses. So, regardless of gender, every victim may be sure to get equal access to justice.

Asking whether gender should be given precedence in harassment is of negligible significance since these types of crimes are against humanity and whichever the perpetrator is, they must be held accountable.

When it comes to sexual harassment of women, the government, media, and society are considerably more engaged and attentive than when it comes to male sexual harassment. Hence, it is crucial for our culture to acknowledge and embrace the idea that "man can also be raped" and "woman can also rape", consequently man can also be victim and women an also be the perpetrator.

In addition, whomever unjustly accused an innocent person of rape, regardless of gender, should be thoroughly investigated and imprisoned for falsifying the evidence. Therefore, in my opinion, a distinct entity must be established to counteract misleading evidence and assess the case's veracity before it gets to a subsequent trial. because doing so will allow the media and society to identify the genuine guilty party.

Equality is a fallacy, and Indian feminists seek privilege rather than equality. If there had been true equality, people would have demanded work rather than alimony or maintenance. And while it is true that all family laws discriminate against males and may be challenged, who would raise the alarm? There is no public anger over this prejudice. If you discuss it, you are labeled a misogynist. As a result, everyone is quiet and conforming to the system, which believes that women are all saints and men are predators.

As was previously highlighted, our nation's maintenance legislation must be gender-neutral. More damage than good might come from turning them into laws that only benefit women. It is a serious offense to other gender groups to make a right gender-specific.

Furthermore, laws that are not updated to reflect the times' changes frequently lose their validity over time and are declared unconstitutional. However, it is advisable to change them early rather than later in order to avoid such extreme situations. To sum up, maintenance rules ought to be applied to both spouses under secular law, which is equally applicable to all regardless of gender and belief.

The Gender biased alimony system and child custody laws in India are examples of how the Indian Law has a history of supporting gender discriminating and preconceived stereotypical lines of thought. It is becoming more and more obvious that such laws have no place in a contemporary society that has to move past the colonial mindset. Most of these issues have been already addressed in the majority of nations; India should follow suit and repeal its outdated laws to avoid furthering the perception of a broken legal system.

Suggestions
Enacting legislation that are gender-neutral - Implementing gender-neutral legislation is the only way to get past this oddity and fix it. Leaving personal laws aside, the secular law should always adhere to the Indian constitution's requirements. A secular legislation, the code of criminal procedure shall not violate the constitution in any way, including with regard to sexual orientation or religion. It would be a grave injustice and a violation of both the preamble and the constitution's equality clause if males were excluded from its scope.

Analyze and adapt to what the rest of the world is doing - Many advanced and developing nations outside of their own understand the value of gender neutrality and permit people to make claims for "spousal maintenance" as opposed to "maintenance to just wives." The United Kingdom, Russia, Singapore, France, Sri Lanka, and South Africa are a few examples of these nations.

Become familiar with the new normal-The traditional conventions are starting to stray as society changes. Taking care of the house while the woman works outside the home is now socially acceptable. Another situation is when the wife makes a lot more money than the husband. In such circumstances, the husband may find himself in a difficult position because the wife would no longer be liable to her ex-husband. This may seem strange in Indian society, yet a circumstance like this might leave divorced or separated men "destitution."

End-Notes:

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8. Bourreau-Dubois, C�cile, and Myriam Doriat-Duban. "LAW AND ECONOMICS OF ALIMONY: MARRIAGE OR DIVORCE?" History of Economic Ideas, vol. 23, no. 3, 2015, pp. 147-65. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/43924293. Accessed 9 Dec. 2022.
9. Landes, Elisabeth M. "Economics of Alimony." The Journal of Legal Studies, vol. 7, no. 1, 1978, pp. 35-63. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/724064. Accessed 9 Dec. 2022.
10. Wilcox, W.B. et al. (no date) The evolution of Divorce, National Affairs. Available at: https://nationalaffairs.com/publications/detail/the-evolution-of-divorce.
11. Vernier, Chester G., and John B. Hurlbut. "The Historical Background of Alimony Law and Its Present Statutory Structure." Law and Contemporary Problems, vol. 6, no. 2, 1939, pp. 197-212. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/1189357. Accessed 9 Dec. 2022.
12. Dua, , S. (2022) You will lose all this if you divorce your wife - brace up for repercussions, The Economic Times. Available at: https://m.economictimes.com/wealth/legal/will/you-will-lose-all-this-if-you-divorce-your-wife/brace-up-for-repercussions/slideshow/92741512.cms
13. Mavad, A. (2021) 'alimony laws in India are biased', Deccan Herald. DH News Service. Available at: https://www.deccanherald.com/metrolife/metrolife-your-bond-with-bengaluru/alimony-laws-in-india-are-biased-1052516.html.
14. The Special Marriage Act, 1954
15. The Indian Christian Marriage Act, 1872
16. Ruma Chakraborty vs Sudha Rani Banerjee & Anr on 4 October, 2005. CASE NO.: Appeal (civil) 2565 of 2001
17. The Hindu Adoptions And Maintenance Act, 1956 Section 3(B), Sub-Section (Ii)
18. The Hindu Adoptions And Maintenance Act, 1956 Section 23 & 3
19. Rajesh Burmann Vs Mitul Chatterjee (Barman), Civil Appeal No. Of 2008, Arising Out Of Special Leave Petition (Civil) No. 14183 Of 2007
20. Ibid
21. The Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939, section 2 sub section ii
22. The Muslim Women (Protection Of Rights On Divorce) Act, 1986
23. Ahmad Khan v. Shah Bano Begum [1985 (1) SCALE 767 = 1985 (3) SCR 844 = 1985 (2) SCC 556 = AIR 1985 SC 945]
24. Ibid
25. Danial Latifi & Anr v. Union of India (2001) 7 SCC 740 (India)
26. The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, Section 125
27. Dutta, M. (2020) The difficulties of a litigant in India begin when he has obtained a decree, Live Law. Live Law. Available at: https://www.livelaw.in/columns/the-difficulties-of-a-litigant-in-india-begin-when-he-has-obtained-a-decree-156528.
28. Ibid
29. Ibid
30. The Constitution of India [India], 26 January 1950, Section 15(3) and 39
31. Ruth Vanita, Democratising Marriage: Consent, Custom and the Law, in Law Like Love, 351, (Arvind Narrain & Alok Gupta eds., 2011).
32. Amit Anand Choudhary / TNN / Updated: Apr 21, 2017 (no date) Supreme Court sets alimony benchmark: 25% of ex-husband's net salary: India News - Times of India, The Times of India. TOI. Available at: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/supreme-court-sets-alimony-benchmark-25-of-ex-husbands-net-salary/articleshow/58288399.cms.
33. Chandra, J. (2021) Amendments to marriage age contradict other laws, Return to frontpage. Available at: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/proposed-amendments-to-marriage-age-contradict-other-laws/article38015428.ece.
34. Feminist noun - definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes: Oxford Advanced American Dictionary at Oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com (no date) feminist noun - Definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes | Oxford Advanced American Dictionary at OxfordLearnersDictionaries.com. Available at: https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/american_english/feminist
35. Keshav (2016) How to fight false cases of DV, maintenance, CRPC 125, 498A ETC, Men Rights India. Available at: https://menrightsindia.net/2015/01/how-to-fight-false-cases-of-dv-maintenance-crpc-125-498a-etc.html.