Rule denying maternity leave for third child is unconstitutional: Uttarakhand High Court

Dehradun, August 3: Uttarakhand High Court showed thumbs down a state rule denying maternity leave to female government employees for their third child.

 

Justice Rajiv Sharma issued the order on a petition filed by one Ms. Urmla Masih, challenging the second proviso to Fundamental Rule 153 of the Financial Hand Book of the U.P. Fundamental Rules, as adopted by the State of Uttarakhand. The proviso disentitled from maternity leave female government employees who have two or more living children.

“This proviso is contrary to Section 27 of the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961. Section 27 of the Act, 1961 does not prohibit, in any manner, to grant of maternity leave to a female government servant, who has already two children at the time of submission of an application for maternity leave, after giving birth to a third child,” the single bench of Justice Rajiv Sharma ruled.

Justice Sharma gave the directions while hearing a writ petition of Urmila Masih, who had applied for a maternity leave for almost six months in 2015. The court issued the orders on July 30 but its copy was made available on Thursday.