India, March 13 -- Supreme Court of India on Friday expressed concern that making menstrual leave a compulsory legal entitlement could unintentionally harm the career prospects of women by influencing hiring decisions and workplace responsibilities.

A Bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi observed that introducing a statutory mandate for paid menstrual leave might lead employers to hesitate in assigning key responsibilities to women employees.

"The moment you introduce this as a law and make it a compulsory condition, you may not be able to assess the amount of damage you may do to their career. Nobody may give them big responsibilities. In judicial services, people may not assign trials to them," Chief Justi...