Bhubaneswar, Jan. 23 -- A divorced Muslim woman has the right to seek maintenance under either the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986, or Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code, or both, as the two remedies are complementary and not mutually exclusive, the Orissa high court has ruled. While adjudicating two cases of revision petition over maintenance, the court examined whether a divorced Muslim woman, who initially sought maintenance under the 1986 Act, could subsequently invoke Section 127 CrPC(which empowers a magistrate to enhance monthly maintenance). The woman's former husband argued that since the original order was passed under the 1986 Act, recourse to Section 127 CrPC was "legally impermissible" unless both parties filed a declaration under Section 5 of the 1986 Act opting for CrPC provisions. The HC, however, ruled that for divorced Muslim women married under Muslim law, both Section 125 CrPC and the 1986 Act are applicable....