'Only A Woman Knows How Difficult It Is To Balance Motherhood & Career': Kerala High Court Reinstates Woman Fired For Availing Maternity Leave

While dealing with a plea where maternity leave was denied to a woman, the Kerala High Court deprecated the State for terminating her service as the counsellor at the Women and Child Development Department and set aside the order of termination. 

Justice Devan Ramachandran while pronouncing the judgment observed that "only a woman knows how acutely difficult it is to balance motherhood and her career."

The petition was filed by Vandana Sreemedha, a Counsellor on contract, after she was terminated from service allegedly for unauthorized absence. In her plea, she contended that her request for maternity leave was turned down, and to aggravate her agony, she was terminated from service when she proceeded to take the leave.

Sreemedha added that she had approached several authorities with a representation seeking maternity leave, and yet all her efforts went in vain. Advocate Sri B Mohanlal represented the petitioner in the matter. 

It was also submitted before the Court that the Director of the Department had gone to extent of threatening to take action against the District Child Protection Officer for appointing the petitioner "without proper care", thus implying that he ought not to have offered employment to her solely because she had recently delivered, thus being in need for leave to care her child.

The Court after hearing the parties asserted as follows: 

"Without the requirement for any elaboration, this attitude is not one which this court can countenance in this century, when women essay several roles, take on variegated responsibilities, and require to be adept multitaskers, to survive and find wings to achieve their legitimate ambitions."

The Single Bench found the whole incident unfortunate and emphasized that such acts undermine the confidence and morale of persons like the petitioner, who bravely face the challenges of life every day, with the steely resolve to balance their personal and official life to the best of their capacity.

It was also brought to the attention of the Bench by Government Pleader Sunil Kumar Kuriakose that the petitioner had not been substituted as of now and that her post was still lying vacant. Although the respondents agreed to reinstate her, they stood their ground that no monetary benefits shall be granted to the petitioner for the period when she was on leave. 

The Bench left this decision to the discretion of the Authorities. Allowing the writ petition, ordered the respondents to reinstate the petitioner forthwith and to reconsider her application for leave expeditiously. 

The Court while setting aside the order terminating the petitioner from service, added as such:

"Life as a new mother is like being on a roller-coaster and being a working mother is tougher. The minutiae of motherhood can never be properly contemplated and it involves navigation through myriad daily issues, which ultimately determine the health and future of the child. The mother's constant proximity to the child is scientifically proven to be absolutely unexpendable and this, primarily and inter alia, is why the provisions for maternity leave are now internationally accepted."

Case Title: Vandana Sreemedha J v. State of Kerala & Ors. 

Click Here To Read The Order