Menstrual leave law not in women's best interest: SC

The Supreme Court on Friday said that a law mandating menstrual leave may not be in the best interest of women, leaving it to the government to deliberate the issue while refusing to entertain a public interest litigation (PIL) in this regard.

- Abraham Thomas

Citing “practical realities” women may face in the job market if such leave were to be made mandatory by the court, a bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant said, “You do not know the kind of mindset this can create in the workplace and job market. The moment you introduce a law, you cannot imagine the long term problem they may face.”

The court was hearing a PIL filed by a lawyer Shailendra Mani Tripathi, who said that there is no uniform policy across the country on this, with some institutions and companies providing menstrual leave as a matter of policy, and others not doing so.