A writ petition was filed with the High Court yesterday seeking its directive on the government to formulate a paternity leave policy for the employees at all institutions of the country.

Supreme Court lawyer Ishrat Hasan submitted the petition as a public interest litigation, in which her six-month-old child Nubaid Bin Sadi's name has been included as a petitioner too, saying that the absence of paternity leave made it extremely difficult for new fathers to take care of their wives and newborns.

There are provisions for paternity leaves in more than 78 countries including our neighbouring India, Bhutan, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka according to an International Labour Organization (ILO) report, she said in the petition.

The lawyer also said that the notion that only mothers will take care of newborns has changed with changing times. The involvement of both parents is required now, especially in a busy city like Dhaka where help from other family members is limited.

Besides, the rate of cesarean birth is very high in the country, the petitioner said in the petition, adding that it takes time for a mother to recover after the procedure.

Talking to The Daily Star about the writ petition, Advocate Ishrat Hasan said that not having a paternity leave policy in the country is contradictory to articles 7, 27, 28, 29, 31, and 32 of the constitution.

The HC may hold a hearing on the petition next week, she added.