Prakash Padia, J. - (1.) The petitioner has preferred the present writ petition with a prayer to issue a Mandamus directing the respondent No.3/District Basic Education Officer, Bijnor to grant the petitioner maternity leave with honorarium from 30.12.2018 to 31.3.2019. A further prayer is also made to issue a mandamus directing the aforesaid respondents to decide the application submitted by the petitioner on 21.12.2018 forthwith.
(2.) Facts as contained in the writ petition are that the petitioner was initially appointed on the post of Anudeshak on 20.07.2013 at Purwa Madhyamik Vidyalaya Gowali Noorpur, District Bijnor. Subsequently, The petitioner was married with one Sunil Kumar on 18.2.2018. Due to wedlock, the petitioner has conceived and to be born a female child. In this regard Doctor advised to the petitioner to take complete bed rest. In this regard an application dated 26.9.2018 was submitted by the petitioner before the Block Education Officer as well as the District Basic Education Officer, Bijnor to grant her maternity leave from 1.10.2018 to 31.3.2019. On the aforesaid application, the District Basic Education Officer, Bijnor granted maternity leave to the petitioner only for 90 days, i.e., 1.10.2018 to 29.12.2018 with honorarium. The request was made by the petitioner to grant her maternity leave for 180 days was ignored by the District Basic Education Officer Bijnor while granting leave for 90 days. No reason whatsoever has been assigned by the aforesaid authority that under which circumstances the request for grant of maternity leave for a period of 180 days was turned down and the maternity leave was granted only for a period of 90 days.
(3.) It is contended by learned counsel for the petitioner that the Parliament in the twelfth year of Republic of India has enacted an Act namely Maternity Benefit Act, 1961. The aforesaid Act was amended in the year 2017 known as Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act, 2017. By the aforesaid amendment, the period for grant of maternity leave as mentioned in the Act 1961 is twelfth weeks has been increased from 8 weeks to 26 weeks. The provisions contained in the maternity Benefit Act 1961 has been duly adopted by the State Government and the Government issued orders in this regard from time to time. Some of the Government Orders are appended along with the writ petition as Annexure 5.;