The respect for women increases manifold when she is addressed as janni meaning creator. The women are equated to the level of a goddess as they also par take part in shaping the universe with their unique power of giving birth. The women have time and again waged battles for securing dignity in the society. The motherhood of the women have often been questioned and the judiciary has always rescued the motherhood from the conservative clutches of the society.
Recently the Supreme Court of India in the land mark case of K. Umadevi v. State of Tamil Nadu (Civil Appeal No. 2526 of 2025) recognized maternity benefit as a constitutional right. This move of the Supreme Court has further extended the periphery of reproductive rights and it has included maternity benefit as a part of Article 21 of the Constitution of India dealing with right to dignity.
This judgment has brought a balance between motherhood and workplace. Since the women are contributing equally in the progress of the nation and half of the workforce in the country constitutes female workers, this ruling has laid another milestone for gender justice in the country. The court has interpreted the provisions of the Maternity Benefit Act to protect women workers though this legislation is not applicable to state government employees. There are many important rulings of the Supreme Court in which the motherhood has been included in the ambit of Article 21.
In this case, the Tamil Nadu government’s stance that the maternity benefit cannot be granted if the woman is already having two living children. In this case the women got divorced and the custody of the children was with the husband. On remarriage of the women, a child was born and government under the service rules denied maternity benefit. The court emphasized the importance of maternity benefit that it was designed to protecting working women so that during the period of pregnancy and post natal care, the women worker can survive, nurture and can rejoin service with same energy and efficiency as before pregnancy. denying women this benefit implies the denial of reproductive right.
Reproductive rights are not confined to the decision of having or not having children. The reproductive rights encompass many rights like right to health, reproductive choice, sexual health and motherhood. The Indian Supreme Court has always upheld the right of motherhood in many earlier judgments. This ruling has come a long way in protecting the motherhood of working women and ensuring the time for nurturing of the child. Article 21 of the Constitution of India encompasses the right to health care facilities both at the pre natal and post natal stage, enforcement of the reproductive rights of the woman and medical needs of the new born child. In the same light, Article 21 has been interpreted to include maternity benefit for working women as a fundamental right.
The maternity benefit has always been interpreted as a statutory right but by overruling the Madras High Court judgment and giving beneficial interpretation for securing social justice. The contention by the learned counsel that denying maternity benefit for the third child is in consonance with the population control program. The maternity leave is given to expectant mothers in their workplaces. The lactating mothers are given the benefit of maternity leave keeping in view the health of the mother. The pregnant women undergo physical and mental stress during gestation period and after delivery. In the cases of pregnancy there are two stages one of pre-natal and second post-natal after delivery of the child. The pregnancy brings about physiological and psychological changes in the pregnant women.
By recognizing maternity benefit as part of reproductive rights, the court has upheld the dignity of the women in the workforce also. The initial bond between mother and child is very important for the early growth and it lays foundation for the life-long development of the child. In case of denial of maternity benefit would result in the loss of development of emotional bond between the child and mother. The nurturing of the child in the womb develops a social, emotional and physical bond between the mother and the child. The changing social structures and norms regarding family have brought great transformation. In such familial changes if strict strictures are passed, the family structure shall crumble as most of the young people are avoiding marriage and not conceiving children.
This relief by the court has come to the rescue of working women. The women workforce with such benefits shall contribute heart-heartedly for the progress of their institution without the fear of thinking about their kids. This judgment is very progressive and it has expanded the arena of reproductive rights. The reproductive rights are not confined with to whether to have or not have children. But reproductive rights now encompass so many rights including the maternity benefit also. By including maternity benefit within the ambit of Article 21, the Supreme Court of India has upheld the dignity of the working women. Though population control is the policy objective of the government but this judgment to some extent has brought balance between social justice and equity. The court has played proactive role in interpreting the government policy in the constitutional spirit.
By Dr. Harkirandeep Kaur, Assistant Professor, Department of Laws, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar. Email: harkirandeep.law@gndu.ac.in
