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Supreme Court grants maternity leave to adoptive mothers
The Supreme Court has ruled that adoptive mothers are entitled to 12 weeks of maternity leave regardless of the child's age at adoption, striking down a provision in the Code on Social…
The Supreme Court has ruled that adoptive mothers are entitled to 12 weeks of maternity leave regardless of the child's age at adoption, striking down a provision in the Code on Social Security 2020 that limited such leave to cases where the child was adopted within three months of birth.
A bench of Justice J.B. Pardiwala and Justice R. Mahadevan, in March 2026, held that the three-month condition was discriminatory and violated Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution. The court said motherhood is defined by care and bonding, not just childbirth, and that an adopted child is no different from a biological child.
The case was filed by Hamsaanandini Nanduri, who challenged the restrictive provision. The court also urged the government to consider introducing paternity leave, calling childcare a shared responsibility.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The ruling effectively removes a catch-22 in the adoption process: children declared legally free for adoption rarely meet the three-month deadline, so the old rule granted a right no one could use. The judgement also signals that workplace benefits tied to biology are vulnerable to equality challenges. The next date to watch is when the government responds to the court's nudge on paternity leave, which could reshape the Maternity Benefit Act and the Code on Social Security for lakhs of working parents.
Source: livelaw.in
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
