Himachal High Court Affirms Maternity Rights: Third Child No Bar to Leave

In a landmark step for women employees, the Himachal Pradesh High Court has ruled that the birth of a third child cannot automatically be used as a reason to deny maternity leave. The twin judgments highlight that maternity benefits must be understood through the lens of constitutional dignity, social justice, and women’s lived realities.

Justice Jyotsna Rewal Dua directed the state government to grant 12 weeks of maternity leave to a 43-year-old teacher for the birth of her third child. The court stressed that women’s dignity, protected under Articles 15, 21, 42, and 51 of the Constitution, must guide the interpretation of service rules.

The teacher’s application had been rejected under the Central Civil Services (Leave) Rules, 1972, which bar maternity leave beyond two biological children. But the court pointed to the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961 (amended in 2017), which allows relief even for a third child, though for a shorter duration.

Importantly, the court considered her personal circumstances: two children from a previous marriage (one seriously ill), and her remarriage to a widower who had lost his wife and only child. The court held that reproductive decisions are inseparable from women’s dignity and fundamental rights, and service rules must bend to constitutional protections when necessary.

In a similar ruling earlier in August, Justice Sandeep Sharma quashed the state’s rejection of maternity leave for staff nurse Archana Sharma’s third child. He ruled that Rule 43(1) of the CCS Leave Rules must be interpreted purposively, especially since her first two children were born before she joined government service.

Drawing on the Supreme Court’s 2025 judgment in K. Umadevi vs Government of Tamil Nadu, the court observed that childbirth is a “natural incident of life” and maternity benefits must be seen as constitutional protections, not administrative favors. Justice Sharma added that “not just motherhood but also childhood requires special attention.”

Together, the two rulings reinforce a consistent judicial stance: technical rules cannot override constitutional guarantees. The High Court has made it clear that maternity laws must be applied with empathy, context, and constitutional morality — especially when they touch upon gender rights and human dignity.