Menstrual Leave Petition In Supreme Court, Chief Justice Flags A Flip Side

Mandating menstrual leave for women may lead to them being shunned from the workforce and go against them, the Supreme Court said today, stressing that it is not a matter for courts to look into.

Hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that sought directions to the Centre and states to frame policies for menstrual leave, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said, "Mandating such leaves will lead to women being shunned from workforce. We do not want that what we try to do to protect women can act to their disadvantage."

"This is actually a government policy aspect and not for the courts to look into," the court said.

The court said that the issue relates to multiple policy aspects and there is no reason for the court to intervene. "We permit the petitioner to move the secretary in the Ministry of Women and Child Development and to Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati. We request the secretary to look into the matter at the policy level and take a decision after consulting all stakeholders and see if a model policy can be framed," it added.

The court said this ruling will not come in the way of any state government taking steps in this regard.

The top court had taken a similar stand in February this year, when a petition sought a direction to all states to frame rules for menstrual pain leave for women students and employees. Back then, too, the court had said the matter falls in the policy domain.

Currently, Bihar and Kerala are the only two states in the country that have a provision for menstrual leave. While Bihar has a two-day leave policy for women employees, Kerala has a provision for a three-day period leave for women students.