Army nurse sacked over marriage to get ₹60 lakh

Over three decades after getting fired just because she got married, an Army nurse is set to be compensated.

The Supreme Court has ordered the central government to pay ₹60 lakh to Selina John, who held the rank of Lieutenant when she was dismissed from service after her marriage in 1988.

In 2012, Selina had approached the Armed Forces Tribunal which ordered that she be given her job back. However, the central government in 2019 challenged the order before the Supreme Court.

The top court held that it was a coarse case of gender discrimination.

"Terminating employment because the woman has got married is a coarse case of gender discrimination and inequality. 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," a bench of Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Dutta said in the order, as per an NDTV report.

The bench modified the tribunal's order to reinstate the employee and provide back wages and asked the Centre to provide ₹60 lakh in compensation.