Bank ordered to give employees paid leave and align policies with Maternity and Paternity Leave Act 2023
State Bank of Pakistan. Photo: File
ISLAMABAD:
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has been fined Rs 500,000 for illegally denying an employee paternity leave following a ruling by Federal Ombudsman for Protection from Harassment Fouzia Waqar. The case was filed by Syed Basit Ali, an officer serving as OG-1 at SBP Banking Services Corporation (BSC).
Following the birth of his son on 4 April 2025, he applied for 30 days of paternity leave on 10 April. His request was rejected because “no such leave existed under the existing policy of the SBP”, although maternity leave is provided to female employees under the Maternity and Paternity Leave Act, 2023.
Ali argued that the SBP BSC falls under the administrative control of the federal government and therefore the law applies. He added that the SBP and the SBP BSC “cannot selectively enact provisions in the Act granting maternity leave while denying paternity leave under the same statute.”
SBP’s counsel countered that the bank as an independent entity is not bound by the law and that paternity leave had not been incorporated into its service rules. The arguments focused largely on questions of jurisdiction. Plaintiff’s counsel presented evidence, including job advertisements and tender documents, to show that SBP BSC complies with federal regulations.
In his decision, Waqar stated: “The denial of paternity leave to the complainant, to which he is legally entitled as a father, while allowing maternity leave to female employees, constitutes clear gender-based discrimination.”
Read: Unsanctioned motherhood
The judgment imposed a fine of Rs 500,000 on the SBP, directing that Rs 400,000 be paid to the complainant within 30 days while the remaining Rs 100,000 to be deposited in the exchequer. The SBP has also been directed to grant Basit Ali 30 days of paid paternity leave and to update its leave policies to be in full compliance with the Maternity and Paternity Leave Act, 2023.
Waqar further said: “Denial of paternity leave amounts to harassment on the basis of gender. Granting maternity leave while denying paternity leave constitutes gender discrimination. Child care is not solely the responsibility of women, and denial of paternity leave undermines the shared responsibility of parents and the best interests of the child.”
The decision further emphasized that statutory rights cannot be overridden by internal policies and that federal institutions, including autonomous bodies, are bound by constitutional guarantees and welfare legislation.
“The order categorically rejected the long-standing claim of institutional autonomy used to deny statutory rights. The State Bank of Pakistan is owned, controlled and supervised by the federal government and SBP Banking Services Corporation, as its wholly-owned subsidiary, cannot escape the application of federal welfare legislation,” the ombudsman added.
