Pregnancy no ground for refusing government job to a woman

NeetuBala v. Union of India & Others

In a land mark judgment relating to rights of women in uniformed services, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has ruled that a woman candidate could not be permanently debarred from joining as a doctor in the Army Medical Corps (AMC) on the pretext that she became pregnant during the selection process and added that such an action has no place in modern India.The petitioner, who applied in early 2013 for a short service commission in the AMC was asked to join service in February 2014 after clearing all examinations and medical tests. Unlike other branches, married women till the age of 45 are eligible to join AMC as there is no training in a military academy and candidates join a hospital closest to residence. They are subsequently made to complete a basic in-service course of eight weeks within a flexible time period.However, between the period of her application and joining, the petitioner was in midst of a pregnancy and disclosed this fact on the date of joining after which she was not allowed to assume duties. She was informed that she could not join since her pregnancy amounted to deterioration in health.Her candidature was cancelled and she was advised to undergo the entire selection process again in case she wanted to join AMC. Aggrieved, the petitioner had moved the High Court in 2014 stating that pregnancy was not ‘deterioration in health’ but a mere incidence of marriage and womanhood. The petitioner pointed out that there would have been no problem had she not disclosed her pregnancy or had conceived the day after joining or had given birth before the joining date and that in paramilitary forces uniformed doctors were simply asked to join after childbirth in case any problem was envisaged due to pregnancy.The court held that forcing a choice between bearing a child and employment interferes both with a woman’s reproductive rights and her right to employment and such an action could have no place in modern India. The High Court has also held that in such cases, keeping the nature of employment in consideration, the government could grant maternity leave or keep a vacancy reserved which could be offered to a candidate after childbirth.

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