Supreme Court To Hear Plea On Menstrual Pain Leave

The Supreme Court on 15 February, Wednesday agreed to hear a public interest litigation (PIL) on menstrual pain leave for female students and working women across India.

The bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud listed it for a hearing on February 24. The petition emphasized that menstrual periods have been largely disregarded by society, the government, and other stakeholders, but some organizations and state governments have taken notice. Advocate Vishal Tiwari states in the plea that companies such as Ivipanan, Zomato, Byju's, Swiggy, Mathrubhumi, Magzter, Industry, ARC, FlyMyBiz, and Gozoop provide paid period leaves.

Plea On Menstrual Pain Leave

Henceforth, the petitioner insisted the top court direct state governments to establish regulations for menstrual pain leave. The petition also stated about the effective implementation of Section 14 of the Maternity Benefit Act, which involves the appointment of inspectors to enforce the Act's provisions.

Further, the petition stated that as per the online research, only Meghalaya had issued a notification in 2014 for the appointment of such officers where as Bihar is the only state in India that provided menstrual pain leave as part of a 1992 policy. The plea also states that denial of menstrual pain leave or period leave for women in the remaining states was a violation of their right to equality under Article 14 of the Constitution. Moreover, pointed out the lack of legislative will to address the concept of menstrual pain leave. By filing a petition it has asked SC to intervene.

There is no denying that periods or the menstrual cycle are considered taboo, which is one of the reasons why it is neglected and never seen as a problem. Menstrual pain is subjective, the intensity of pain varies depending on the body's health. Whether women should be given mandatory period leaves or not should not be a matter of debate. But must be considered from the perspective of casual leaves. It could be added in sick or casual leaves, women who want to take it can and those who don't want can simply not use it. Many countries such as the United Kingdom, China, Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia, South Korea, Spain, and Zambia have been providing menstrual pain leave in some form.

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