Madhya Pradesh High Court news: Reaffirming the economic value of unpaid domestic work, the Madhya Pradesh High Court has held that a homemaker’s contribution cannot be equated with that of an unskilled labourer and such “multifarious services” form the backbone of family life, while enhancing the relief in a motor accident case to Rs 5.44 lakh.

Justice Hirdesh was hearing a miscellaneous appeal filed by a family member of a woman who had died in an accident. The appeal was filed under Section 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act, in the wake of an award passed by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT), Morena, which had fixed compensation at Rs 4.28 lakh for the homemaker’s death.

“A homemaker renders multifarious services to the family, manages the entire household without fixed working hours and without any leave,” the Madhya Pradesh High Court observed, emphasising that the economic value of such labour “cannot be ignored while determining just compensation.”

Last month, while dealing with a case involving grant of maintenance in a matrimonial dispute, the Delhi High Court had observed that the assumption that a non-earning spouse is “idle” reflects a misunderstanding of domestic contribution.

Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma in a detailed judgment passed on February 16 allowed the wife’s plea and set aside the orders of the magistrate and the appellate court under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act (PWDV Act) that had denied her interim maintenance.

On the argument on behalf of the husband that the wife cannot sit “idle” and claim maintenance, the court noted that a homemaker does not “sit idle” but does labour that allows the earning spouse to function effectively.

“A homemaker does not “sit idle”; she performs labour that enables the earning spouse to function effectively. To disregard this contribution while adjudicating claims of maintenance would be unrealistic and unjust,” the order read.