Non-biological mother can get maternity leave too: HC

The Kerala High Court on Tuesday held that a woman does not have to be the biological mother of her child to avail maternity leave.

Justice D Seshadri Naidu pronounced the verdict while considering a petition by P Geetha, deputy general manager with the Kerala Livestock Development Board, who was denied maternity leave as her child was born from a surrogate.

The petitioner, who had earlier lost a son, decided to find a surrogate after years of efforts to conceive failed. She and her husband had found a hospital in Hyderabad for the purpose, reports said. Geetha’s application for six-month maternity leave had been denied by employers in July as she was not her child’s biological mother.

They pointed out that foster motherhood was not covered under Kerala Service Rules and sought a medical certificate along with her application.