Supreme Court of India
Municipal Corporation of Delhi v. Female Workers (Muster Roll)
Whether women engaged on muster roll on daily wages are entitled to maternity benefit.
Decided under an earlier law
The Court decided this case under the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961. Section 164 of the Code on Social Security, 2020 repeals the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961. The Court's words are shown below beside the Code provision this library compares them with. This library does not say whether the decision holds good under the Code: compare the two texts.
What the Court decided
Each point is this library's summary, followed by the Court's own words, checked word for word against the Supreme Court's typed copy of the judgment (JUDIS file 20327). The pinpoint gives the page of the Supreme Court Reports and the margin letter (A to H) printed beside the line where the words begin.
Nothing in the Maternity Benefit Act confines its benefits to regular employees; casual and daily-wage women on muster roll are not left out.
We have scanned the different provisions of the Act, but we do not find anything contained in the Act which entitles only regular women employees to the benefit of maternity leave and not to those who are engaged on casual basis or on muster roll on daily wage basis.
[2000] 2 S.C.R. 171, at 182 D · open the report at p. 182 there is no justification for denying the benefit of this Act to casual workers or workers employed on daily wage basis.
[2000] 2 S.C.R. 171, at 177 D · open the report at p. 177 The principles of Article 11 of the convention on discrimination against women, which the judgment sets out, were read into the women's contract of service, entitling them to the Act's benefits.
These principles which are contained in Article 11, reproduced above, have to be read into the contract of service between Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the women employees (muster roll); and so read these employees immediately become entitled to all the benefits conceived under the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961.
[2000] 2 S.C.R. 171, at 187 G · open the report at p. 187 The Corporation was to give the Act's benefits to its muster-roll women employees, and to seek a notification extending the Act to it if none had been issued.
the direction issued by the Industrial Tribunal shall be complied with by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi by approaching the State Government as also the Central Government for issuing necessary Notification under the Proviso to Sub-section (1) of Section 2 of the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, if it has not already been issued. In the meantime, the benefits under the Act shall be provided to the women (muster roll) employees of the Corporation who have been working with them on daily wages.
[2000] 2 S.C.R. 171, at 188 A · open the report at p. 188
The earlier provision and the Code
Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, section 3(o)
As quoted in the judgment: [2000] 2 S.C.R. 171, at 177 F · open the report at p. 177
a woman employed, whether directly or through any agency, for wages in any establishment.
Social Security Code, section 2(91)
Definitions In force
(91) "woman" means a woman employed, whether directly or through any contractor, for wages in any establishment:
Provided that for the purposes of Chapter IV, a woman who is or was an employee in respect of whom contribution is or were payable under the said Chapter and who is by reason thereof, entitled to any of the benefits provided under the said Chapter shall be called “insured woman” and shall include—
(i) a commissioning mother who as biological mother wishes to have a child and prefers to get embryo implanted in any other woman;
(ii) a woman who legally adopts a child of up to three months of age.
Wording in common: 21% of the words, in the same order.
Wording differs; the decision may not carry over. The Code provision is not worded like the provision the Court interpreted.