VIJAYAWADA: The Andhra Pradesh High Court has dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking directions to grant 180 days of child care leave and five additional casual leave days to women employees working in the High Court and district judiciary on Thursday. The court held that PILs are not maintainable in service-related matters concerning employees.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Lisa Gill and Justice R Raghunandan Rao delivered the order observing that the Supreme Court has consistently ruled that public interest litigations cannot be entertained in matters relating to service conditions of employees. The bench, therefore, declared the petition not maintainable and dismissed it.
The PIL was filed by Archbishop Dr Chegudi Ashok Babu, who sought parity between women employees of the judiciary and those working in various government departments. The petitioner requested the court to direct authorities to extend the benefits of 180 days of child care leave and five additional casual leave days to women employees serving in the High Court and district courts.
During the hearing, counsel for the petitioner, Salman Raju, presented arguments in support of the plea.
However, High Court Standing Counsel Vivekananda opposed the petition, contending that service-related issues cannot be raised through a PIL. He also placed before the court relevant Supreme Court judgments supporting the objection.