HC imposes Rs 50,000 fine on Delhi govt for challenging order granting maternity benefits to contractual employee

New Delhi [India], March 14 (ANI): The Delhi High Court imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on the Delhi government after dismissing its appeal against a single judge bench order granting maternity benefits to a woman contractual employee at State Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission.
"The appeal being misconceived is, alongwith all pending applications, dismissed, with Rs 50,000 costs (to) be paid to the respondent within four weeks from today," the division bench of the high court stated in its judgement on March 12, last year.
The court noted that it was 'surprised' that a government that publicised schemes promoting the interest of women filed such a 'misconceived appeal'.
"We are surprised that the Government of NCT of Delhi, which is giving great publicity to the steps being taken to promote the interest of women in Delhi and has under its recently announced scheme Mukhyamantri Mahila Samman Yojna promised to pay all adult women in the city except those who are tax-payers/government employees or are drawing pension, a monthly sum of Rs 1,000 in the future has chosen to file such a misconceived appeal to assail an order which grants the benefits under the Act to a young woman, who has with utmost dedication served in the Delhi State Consumer Forum over 5 years," division bench added in its judgement.
The court refused to interfere with the order of a single judge, stating on Tuesday, "We find no reason to interfere with the impugned order insofar as it directs the appellants to pay to the respondent salary and other monetary benefits for 26 weeks for which period she had sought maternity benefits."
The division bench, comprising Justices Rekha Palli and Shalinder Kaur, dismissed the appeal.
"We find no merit in the appellant's plea that the respondent was not entitled to receive any benefits under the Act for the period beyond March 31, 2018, the date when the term of her contractual engagement was expiring," the bench ruled.
The AAP government moved the high court challenging the single bench order of October 6, 2023, granting her maternity and medical benefits for 26 weeks on account of her pregnancy, as per the provisions of the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961.
The high court found the appeal 'wholly misconceived', citing apex court rulings that held that even women working on a contractual basis are entitled to benefits under the Act even if they exceed the duration of their contractual engagement.
The bench noted that the respondent woman was appointed as a stenographer on a contractual basis with the Delhi State Consumers' Forum on February 7, 2013, for one year. After rendering contractual services over five years without any break on February 28, 2018, she applied for a grant of maternity leave of 180 days from March 1, 2018.
The commission, however, did not accede to her request, informing her that since her contractual engagement was set to expire on March 31, 2018, no maternity leaves would be granted to her.
The woman approached the high court in 2019 not only praying for the grant of maternity benefits during her maternity leave but also that she be allowed to continue in the post of stenographer on a contractual basis like she had worked uninterruptedly for over five years since 2013. Her petition was partly allowed by the single judge.
The counsel for the Delhi government submitted that the term of the contractual engagement of the respondent was expiring on March 31, 2018, and, therefore, the appellant could not be saddled with the liability to pay wages for the entire period (till August 31, 2018) of the purported maternity leave availed by her.
He also contended that the respondent could, at best, be paid wages till March 31, 2018, and not for any period thereafter.
Meanwhile, advocate Syed Hasan Isfahani, the counsel for the respondent, supported the single bench order.
Her counsel submitted that the single judge rightly allowed the writ petition filed by the respondent by holding that she ought to be released all medical, monetary and other benefits accrued in her favour on account of her pregnancy, for which she made an application on February 28, 2018, while her contractual engagement was continuing. (ANI)