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SC removes child age cap for maternity leave in adoption cases: What the big verdict says, how it redefines parenthood
SC rules mothers entitled to 12 weeks' leave from date of adoption, irrespective of child’s age; was so far limited to those who adopt kids aged below 3 months
The Supreme Court on Tuesday declared as unconstitutional a legal provision that limited maternity leave for adoptive mothers to only those who adopt children below three months of age.
While holding that, irrespective of the child’s age, all adoptive mothers will be entitled to 12 weeks of leave from the date of adoption, the court remarked that the provision was discriminatory both for the mother and child.
"Adoption is an equally meaningful pathway for creating a family…biological factors cannot exclusively determine familial values and entitlements,” the SC bench of justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan said.
The SC also urged the Union government to consider introducing paternity leave as a social welfare measure, signalling the need for a more gender-neutral and inclusive approach to caregiving.
SC expands parenthood definition
The bench ruled that age-based classification under Section 60(4) of the Code on Social Security 2020 was “discriminatory” and violative of Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution.
The bench underscored that the purpose of maternity leave does not vary based on how a child enters a family.
“A mother cannot be differentiated between one who brings home a child less than three months and one who adopts a child of a higher age,” the court held.
It added that the right to reproductive autonomy is not confined to biological birth, expanding the constitutional understanding of parenthood to include adoption.
Child's welfare at centre of it
The court placed significant emphasis on the best interests of the child. It noted that older children, particularly those adopted from institutional care, often require greater time for emotional adjustment and integration into a new family.
“The paramount consideration has to be the best interest of the child…including the period required for the child to integrate into the new family,” the bench said.
By denying maternity leave in cases of children being above three months old, the law not only disadvantaged adoptive mothers but also undermined the welfare and developmental needs of adopted children, the court held.
The ruling comes in a petition filed by Karnataka-based lawyer Hamsaanandini Nanduri, who had challenged the provision, earlier contained in the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, and later reproduced in the 2020 Code, as arbitrary and exclusionary.
Her plea, argued through advocate Bani Dikshit also highlighted how India’s adoption framework rarely permits adoption of children below three months, making the age-limited benefit largely illusory.
The Centre, represented through additional solicitor general KM Nataraj, had defended the provision, but the court had agreed in December 2025 to examine its validity after the 2020 Code came into force, replacing the 1961 law while retaining the same restriction.
Tuesday’s ruling is expected to have far-reaching implications for labour and adoption law in India, aligning maternity benefits with the realities of adoption and care-giving.
