Is period leave the right intervention for working women? | In Focus podcast
On February 24th, the Supreme refused to entertain a PIL seeking period leave for students and working women. The three-judge Bench, headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, observed that the issue had \u201cdifferent\u201d dimensions and asked the petitioner to approach the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development to frame a policy.\nThe court also took note of a caveat filed by a law student, which said that compelling employers to grant menstrual pain leave could act as a \u201cdisincentive\u201d for employers when it comes to hiring women.\nIs the question of period leave purely a matter of gender rights \u2013 in terms of acknowledging women\u2019s biological difference and accommodating it through affirmative action? Or is it a bad idea because it will increase gender discrimination against women at the point of recruitment? What kind of a policy intervention, if any, would be appropriate in this context?