Second Maternity Leave Cannot Be Denied Even if Gap Between Two Children is Less Than Two Years: Court

The Allahabad High Court’s Lucknow Bench has clarified that a woman employee cannot be denied maternity leave for a second child merely because the gap between the first and second maternity leave is less than two years. The court held that the provisions of the Financial Handbook cannot override the statutory right to maternity benefits.

 

The order was passed while hearing a petition filed by Manisha Yadav. The petitioner had challenged an order dated April 4, 2026, through which her request for second maternity leave had been rejected. The rejection was based on the ground that there was a gap of less than two years between the two maternity leaves.

 

On behalf of the petitioner, advocate Chinmay Mishra argued that the state had wrongly relied upon Rule 153(1) of the Financial Handbook. It was submitted that the said rule cannot be applied in a manner that defeats the right of a woman employee to maternity leave. The argument emphasized that maternity benefit is a welfare measure and must be interpreted in favour of the mother and child.

 

The court found that the petitioner had applied for maternity leave again within two years of the birth of her first child, and her application had been rejected solely on that ground. The court set aside the rejection order and directed the authorities to grant maternity leave to the petitioner from April 6, 2026, to October 2, 2026.

 

The ruling is significant for women employees, particularly those serving in government departments, as it reinforces that maternity leave cannot be denied on technical grounds where the law recognizes the right to such leave. The decision also underlines that administrative rules must be read in harmony with welfare legislation and constitutional principles protecting motherhood, dignity, and child welfare.

 

The judgment is expected to guide similar cases where maternity leave applications are rejected on the basis of spacing between childbirths. It makes clear that the entitlement to maternity leave is not dependent on a rigid two-year gap between children and that authorities must consider such requests in accordance with the broader purpose of maternity protection.