Bombay High Court Orders Airports Authority of India to Grant Maternity Benefits
The Bombay High Court emphasized the importance of employers showing compassion towards pregnant women in the workforce, asserting that they must receive maternity benefits. The ruling came in response to a case involving the Airports Authority of India (AAI) denying maternity benefits to a woman.
The court, comprising Justices AS Chandurkar and Jitendra Jain, addressed a petition from a woman challenging AAI’s refusal of maternity benefits, citing her ineligibility for maternity leave. It directed AAI to grant the woman maternity benefits, stressing that female employees, regardless of their duties, are entitled to all necessary facilities.
Highlighting the natural process of motherhood, the court underscored the employer’s obligation to be considerate and accommodating towards pregnant employees, acknowledging the physical challenges they face while balancing work responsibilities.
The petitioner, who joined AAI after her husband’s demise, had a child in 1997 and later remarried, giving birth to another child in 2009. However, she did not claim maternity benefits at the time. It was only in 2012, after the birth of her third child, that she applied for maternity benefits, which AAI refused, citing her existing children.
The court noted that the Maternity Leave Regulation of 2003 aims to provide maternity leave benefits without imposing population control measures. It criticized AAI’s decision, emphasizing that denying maternity leave based on the number of surviving children is unjustified.
Further, the court found fault with AAI’s argument regarding the timing of the petitioner’s application for maternity benefits, ruling that it was unreasonable to deny her entitlement based on past occurrences.
In light of these considerations, the court quashed AAI’s decision and ordered it to grant maternity benefits to the woman within eight weeks.
Advocates Pavitra Mahesh and Meelan Topkar represented the woman, while Advocate Ahmed Padela, briefed by The Law Point, appeared for AAI.
Click here to read the order.
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