Lucknow High Court Rules Maternity Leave Cannot Be Denied Based on Age Gap Between Children, Grants Relief to Employee
_409263892.jpg)
In a significant legal development protecting women's workplace rights, the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court has delivered a crucial verdict regarding maternity benefits. The court formally quashed and set aside an administrative order that had previously denied a female employee her rightful maternity leave under the pretext that the age difference between her two children was less than two years. Emphasizing fairness and established judicial precedents, the bench ordered authorities to immediately grant the petitioner her leave along with all associated service benefits.
Details of the Lucknow High Court Case and Petition
The ruling was delivered by Justice Pankaj Bhatia while presiding over a writ petition filed by the petitioner, Seema. The legal challenge was brought forward against an administrative order issued on July 20, which had summarily rejected Seema's application for maternity leave spanning from June 17 to December 13. The sole justification provided by the authorities for the rejection was that her consecutive children were born with an age gap of less than two years, a restriction the court found legally unsound.
Precedent Set by Previous Rulings on Maternity Rights
During the proceedings, the bench observed that the core legal question at hand had already been comprehensively addressed and settled by the court in an earlier landmark ruling on April 16 in the case of Manisha Yadav v. State of Uttar Pradesh and Others.
Reaffirming that judicial consistency must prevail, the High Court noted that the legal principles and protections established in the Manisha Yadav case directly applied to the facts of the present petition. Consequently, the bench officially set aside the July 20 rejection order, ruling in favor of the petitioner and directing the concerned departments to ensure that all service benefits and leave durations are honored without delay.
_976737391_351x234.jpg)
_1355645307_351x234.jpg)
_896529023_351x234.jpg)
_46779988_351x234.jpg)
_1776599827_351x234.jpg)