Maternity Leave during Contractual Service can’t be reduced due to Submission of Fitness Certificate during Regularisation

The Himachal Pradesh High Court has ruled that maternity leave taken during a contractual job cannot be cut short just because the employee submitted a medical fitness certificate while her job was being made permanent.

The case involved Kamini Sharma, a JBT teacher at Government Primary School, Gater, who joined on a contract basis in September 2018. In August 2021, she gave birth to a baby and started her 180-day maternity leave as per the Central Civil Services (CCS) Leave Rules.

While she was still on leave, the Education Department issued an order on 21 October 2021 to regularize her job. To complete the process, Kamini submitted her joining report and medical fitness certificate on 22 October 2021. She stated that she was joining in continuity with her ongoing maternity leave.

However, on 13 December 2021, the department cancelled the rest of her maternity leave, claiming that once she submitted her medical fitness certificate, she was no longer entitled to it. They marked the period from 23 October to 15 December as “extraordinary leave” instead of maternity leave.

Kamini approached High Court, requesting her full maternity leave with all benefits.

Department said that petitioner did not report for duty w.e.f. 23.10.2021, and remained absent without any leave application and without informing the competent authority i.e. BEEO or the Deputy Director (Elementary Education), Solan, period of absence has been rightly treated as extraordinary leave.

Justice Sandeep Sharma noted that while the rules state that maternity leave can’t continue if an employee returns to duty after giving a medical fitness certificate, this case was different. Kamini was still on leave when her job status changed from contractual to permanent, and she had clearly told the authorities that she was continuing with her ongoing maternity leave. The department also hadn’t objected at that time.

The Court decided that the department was wrong to cut short her leave and ordered the state to pay her all the benefits for the full maternity leave period.

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