Failure to provide sanitary napkins defeats right to free & compulsory education: Supreme Court

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday said any condition that forces a girl child to choose between dignity and education cannot be regarded as just and equitable.

"The failure to provide sanitary napkins creates a gender-specific barrier that impedes attendance, and continuity in education, thereby defeating the substantive guarantee of free and compulsory education," a bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan said.

In its judgment directing for providing free sanitary pads to all girl students, the bench noted, Section 3 of the RTE Act is not restricted to the formal entitlement of enrolment in a school, and the right it guarantees is one of effective and continuous access to education.

"Section 3 incorporates the requirement that education shall be provided in conditions consistent with dignity and equality. The absence of sanitary napkins and safe disposal mechanisms compels menstruating girls to stay away from school for several days each month. When such circumstances continue to persist, it is an indication that the State has failed in ensuring regular attendance and continuity of education. This results in direct denial of the right guaranteed under Section 3," the bench said.

The court said menstruation should not be a topic that is only shared in hushed whispers, and it is crucial that boys are educated about the biological reality of menstruation.

"A male student, unsensitised towards the issue, may harass a menstruating girl child, which may discourage her from attending school,'' the bench said.

The court felt, the responsibility weighs even heavier on the male teachers, and they must be sensitised to the needs of a girl child.

"For instance, a request to the restroom or the sudden need to leave the classroom must be treated with sensitivity rather than straight dismissal or invasive questioning. To put it briefly, we would say, ignorance breeds insensitivity, knowledge breeds empathy,'' it said.