“Women will be asked to sit at home”: SC claims that requiring menstrual leaves would hinder professional advancement

The Supreme Court ruled on Friday that requiring menstrual leaves at work would hinder women’s employment prospects because employers would no longer want to recruit them. The observations were made by a bench consisting of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi when it rejected a request for menstruation leaves for Indian working women and students. The Supreme Court stated that while it would be “excellent” if private employers offered these vacations on a voluntary basis, making them mandatory would harm women’s careers.

“The moment you say compulsory in law, nobody will give them jobs, nobody will take them in judiciary or govt jobs , their career is over ….they will say- you should sit at home after informing everyone,” the CJI was quoted as saying .

The CJI also said that pleas seeking such leaves to be made legal are made to create fear and call women “inferior, that menstruation is something bad happening to them”.

The plea was reportedly filed by Shailendra Mani Tripathi and pointed out to the court that certain states, like Kerala, have already introduced a relaxation in schools, and so have some private companies for their women employees.

While the Supreme Court bench agreed with granting period leaves voluntarily, it also highlighted the potential impact of such measures on workplace perceptions and the professional growth of women.Similar worries were voiced by the court in 2024 when it issued a warning about its negative impact on women. For a while now, there have been calls for paid menstruation leave. Critics contend that the regulation would reinforce gender stereotypes, while supporters contend that women should be given distinct monthly leaves to relax on menstrual days.