Guwahati: Supreme Court declined to hear a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that asked the court to order all state governments to establish guidelines for providing working-class women and female students with menstrual pain leaves at their various places of employment on Friday.
A bench under the leadership of Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud noted that in addition to the fact that the issue falls under the purview of a policy decision, a directive of this nature might deter potential employers from employing women for positions.
“Having regard to the policy views, it would be appropriate if the petitioner approaches women and child development ministry. The petition is accordingly disposed of,” said the bench which also included justices PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala, a HT report stated.
The bench agreed during the brief meeting with a lawyer who intervened in the case that any judicial mandate might actually be harmful to women.
“We did not entertain this but he has a point. If you compel employers to grant menstrual leave, it may disincentivise them from hiring women. Also, this is clearly a policy matter…So, we are not dealing with this,” added the court.
In his PIL, advocate Shailendra Mani Tripathi criticised the 1961 Maternity Benefit Act for permitting working women and students to take a monthly break from their jobs during their menstrual cycles.
According to Tripathi, the Act addresses nearly all of the maternity-related issues that women confront in their truest sense.
“The provisions of the Act have made it mandatory for employers to grant paid leave to its women employees for a certain number of days during her pregnancy, in case of miscarriage, for tubectomy operation, and also in case of illness as well as medical complications arising out of these stages of maternity,” said the plea, claiming the state governments have failed in complying with the law in the letter and spirit.
Tripathi asked the court to order the state governments to create appropriate leave policies for working-class women and female students at their various places of employment in order to take time off for menstrual pain.