Termination Of A Woman's Job Due To Marriage Is Gender Discrimination, Unconstitutional: SC
The Supreme Court has held that the termination of a woman from her job upon her marriage is "a coarse case of gender discrimination and inequality" which is impermissible.
The SC bench of Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Datta made the ruling recently in a case filed by a woman nursing officer who was terminated from the Military Nursing Service for getting married.
Discriminatory, unconstitutional: SC
¡°Acceptance of such patriarchal rule undermines human dignity, right to non-discrimination and fair treatment. Laws and regulations based on gender-based bias are constitutionally impermissible. Rules making marriage of women employees and their domestic involvement a ground for disentitlement would be unconstitutional.,¡± the SC said.
Released from military for getting married?
The case was filed by Selina John, who was a permanent commissioned officer in the Military Nursing Service.
She was selected to the Military Nursing Service in 1982 and joined as a trainee at Army Hospital, Delhi. In 1985 she was granted a commission to the rank of Lieutenant in the MNS.
But after she married a fellow Army officer, Major Vinod Raghwan, in 1988, the MNS terminated her job, while she was serving as a Lieutenant (Lt).
The order stated that she was released on the grounds of marriage.
What the MNS rules say
According to the MNS terms and conditions for the Permanent Commission, termination of appointment may be done on the opinion of the Medical Board to be unfit for service or getting married, or for misconduct.
Ex Lt. John challenged her release in the court and after more than two-and-a-half decades of legal battle got a verdict in her favour.
Rule applies only to women?
"We are unable to accept any submission that the respondent - Ex. Lt. Selina John, who was a permanent commissioned officer in the Military Nursing Service, could have been released/discharged on the ground that she had got married. This rule, it is accepted, was applicable to only women nursing officers," the SC said.
The SC also ordered the government to pay her a compensation of Rs 60 lakh.
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