No maternity leave for fourth child: Allahabad HC denies UP govt employee's plea

The Allahabad High Court has denied a government employee maternity leave for her fourth child, ruling that she is not eligible under existing regulations. The court clarified that the petitioner cannot claim maternity leave for her fourth child based on the rules in place.

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According to rules, the petitioner is not entitled to get any maternity leave for her fourth child.

Justice Manju Rani Chauhan issued the order on August 7, addressing a plea by Shashi Kumari, a government employee. Kumari had challenged a prior order from June 19 by the Block Education Officer in Sambhal, which had rejected her maternity leave claim. She sought the court's direction to grant her six months of maternity leave as per the law.

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Hence no interference is required and the writ petition is liable to be dismissed.

During the hearing, the state counsel argued against the petition, asserting that Kumari was not entitled to maternity leave for her fourth child according to the rules. The counsel contended that no judicial interference was necessary and the writ petition should be dismissed.

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She did not avail any leave on the birth of her other three children and so she is now entitled to get the leave for the first time.

Kumari's lawyer submitted that she had not availed maternity leave for her previous three children, making her eligible for it now for the first time. They argued that the education officer's order was arbitrary. However, Justice Chauhan, taking note of the state counsel's statement that Kumari had already availed maternity leave, stated that no interference was required and dismissed the plea.

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No interference is required and dismissed the plea.