FOSHPA fines SBP Rs500,000 for denying paternity leave, terms refusal gender-based discrimination
The Federal Ombudsperson for Protection Against Harassment, Fouzia Waqar, has imposed a Rs500,000 penalty on the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) for unlawfully denying paternity leave to an employee, ruling that the refusal amounted to gender-based discrimination and harassment.
The complaint was filed by Syed Basit Ali, an OG-1 officer serving at SBP Banking Services Corporation (BSC). After the birth of his son on April 4, 2025, Ali applied for 30 days of paternity leave on April 10. His request was rejected on the grounds that SBP’s existing service rules did not provide for paternity leave, despite maternity leave being granted to female employees under the Maternity and Paternity Leave Act, 2023.
Ali contended that SBP BSC operates under the administrative control of the federal government and is therefore bound by federal welfare legislation. He argued that the institution could not selectively implement provisions of the Act by granting maternity leave while denying paternity leave under the same legal framework.
During proceedings, SBP’s counsel maintained that the bank, as an autonomous entity, was not obligated to comply with the Act and that paternity leave had not yet been incorporated into its internal service rules. The case largely revolved around questions of jurisdiction, with the complainant’s legal team presenting documentary evidence, including job advertisements and bidding records, to demonstrate SBP BSC’s adherence to federal regulations.
In her ruling, Waqar held that the denial of paternity leave to a legally entitled father, while allowing maternity leave to female employees, constituted clear gender-based discrimination. She further declared that refusal to grant paternity leave is equivalent to harassment on the basis of gender and undermines the shared responsibility of parenting.
The order directs SBP to pay Rs400,000 in compensation to the complainant within 30 days, while the remaining Rs100,000 will be deposited into the national treasury. Additionally, the bank has been instructed to grant Basit Ali 30 days of paid paternity leave and revise its leave policies to fully align with the Maternity and Paternity Leave Act, 2023.
The Ombudsperson also stressed that statutory rights cannot be overridden by internal policies and that federal institutions, including autonomous bodies, remain bound by constitutional guarantees and welfare legislation. The ruling explicitly rejected the argument of institutional autonomy as a basis to deny legally protected rights, noting that SBP, being owned, controlled, and supervised by the federal government, and its wholly owned subsidiary SBP BSC, cannot escape the application of federal labour and welfare laws.
Highlighting the broader social dimension, Waqar observed that childcare is not solely the responsibility of women and that denying paternity leave reinforces gender inequality in caregiving while running counter to the best interests of the child.
