Maternity Benefits: A fundamental right for all women

On 05 September 2024, the Rajasthan High Court in Minakshi Choudhary v. Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation & Ors. (RSRTC Judgment) has held that denying maternity benefits as guaranteed under the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961 (Act) is violative of fundamental right enshrined under Article 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India. The High Court held that all women employees are entitled to the maximum period of maternity leave mentioned under the Act, irrespective of their nature of employment. In this article, we have discussed the ruling of the High Court and its implications on employers.

Brief Facts

In the present case, the petitioner (Petitioner) was an employee of the Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation (RSRTC). The Petitioner had applied for a maternity leave for a period of 180 days. However, RSRTC granted her a leave for only 90 days as per relevant regulations under the RSRTC Employees Service Regulations, 1965 (Service Regulations).

The Petitioner approached the Rajasthan High Court being aggrieved by the said decision of RSRTC. The issue before the High Court was whether the Petitioner whose services were governed by the Service Regulations was entitled to get 180 days of maternity benefits. The Petitioner argued that the denial of maternity leave of 180 days is discriminatory and violative of the right to equality under Article 14, and the right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution of India.

High Court’s Ruling

The High Court noted that the maternity benefits are not merely derived from statutory rights or contractual agreements, but it is an extension of the fundamental right of life and personal liberty granted under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. Accordingly, the benefit of maternity leaves up to the maximum ceiling of 180 days as provided under the Act must be equally extended to women in public employment. In view of the same, the High Court allowed the writ petition and held that the Petitioner is entitled to maternity leave for 180 days.

Our thoughts

The High Court has rightly reiterated the position that maternity benefits are an essential ingredient of right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution of India, and that all women employees should be subject to equal opportunities in employment.

However, while speaking of fundamental rights of employees, we may revisit the judgment of Kaushal Kishor v. State of Uttar Pradesh & Ors. (Kaushal Kishor) pronounced in January 2023 by the constitutional bench of the Supreme Court of India. In Kaushal Kishor, it was held that freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1)(a), and right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution of India are directly enforceable against private actors including individuals and corporations.

While discussing the judgment, we contemplated that the implication of the judgment may be that non-State actors would be responsible to protect fundamental rights provided under Article 19 and Article 21. We also discussed various issues which are typical to an employer-employee relationship that may become subject to jurisdiction of the writ courts, for example, confidentiality obligations. (Please click here to read our article on Kaushal Kishor)

While the RSRTC judgment deals with a state instrumentality, the observations made by the High Court on maternity benefits being a fundamental right are equally applicable to private employers. In view of Kaushal Kishor, employees may be entitled to seek writ remedies against private employers on questions of maternity benefits if they fall within the realm of Article 21 of the Constitution of India.

Authors: Souvik Ganguly and Shrishti Mishra

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