“Suffering Is Same For All Pregnancies”: Madras High Court Criticises State GO Restricting Maternity Leave To 12 Weeks For Third Child

The Madras High Court recently criticised a Government Order issued by the Human Resource Management Department of the State Government, restricting the maternity leave to a period of 12 weeks (3 months) for third pregnancy. The bench of Justice R Suresh Kumar and Justice N Senthilkumar noted that there was no justification in bringing such a Government Order, which ran contrary to the law laid down by the Supreme Court and the High Court on various occasions. The court added that the suffering of a woman is the same in all pregnancies, be it first, second, or third, and thus no discrimination should be shown in approving maternity leave. “For restricting the period to twelve weeks, absolutely, there is no justification on the part of the Government. If it is a pregnancy, maybe the first pregnancy or the second or the third, suffering would be the same and the pre-delivery as well as the post-delivery care must be taken by the mothers and this equal to all such pregnancies, whether it is the first or second or third. Therefore, no discrimination could be shown by the Government in approving the maternity benefits, especially maternity leave for the third pregnancy to the employees,” the court said. The court was hearing a plea filed by Shayee Nisha, challenging an order of the Principal District Judge rejecting her maternity leave application and a subsequent order of the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, asking her to rejoin on April 27, 2026. The petitioner had sought for maternity leave from February 2, 2026, to February 1, 2027. The petitioner's application for maternity leave was rejected by the Principal District Judge, Villupuram, citing a GO issued by the Government on March 13, 2026. The court noted that the question of granting maternity for the third pregnancy was already settled, as the Supreme Court and the High Court itself had issued orders in this regard. The court also noted that in a recent order, it had directed the Registry to communicate the order to the Government and the Head of Departments for strict compliance. While so, the court noted that the present GO, restricting the period of maternity leave for the third pregnancy to 12 weeks, issued by the Government exercising its administrative powers under Article 162 of the Constitution, was against the settled law and could not be approved. The court added that the State Government, being a welfare state and issuing several policies for the welfare of women, the current GO was against the policy decisions of the State. The court thus noted that the GO should not control the District Judiciary in dealing with such applications of pregnant women seeking maternity leave, even for the third pregnancy. The court thus set aside the order of the District Judge and directed the judge to consider the maternity leave application, unmindful of the GO, and pass necessary actions within a week. Counsel for Petitioner: Ms. K. Swetha Counsel for Respondent: Mr. Arun Anbumani Case Title: Shayee Nisha v The Registrar General and Others Citation: 2026 LiveLaw (Mad) 190 Case No: W.P.No.16245 of 2026Click Here To Read/Download The Judgment

“Suffering Is Same For All Pregnancies”: Madras High Court Criticises State GO Restricting Maternity Leave To 12 Weeks For Third Child

Upasana Sajeev

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