Maternity Leave - working with a company on a contract basis for the past 1.5 years

Hi, I am working with a company on a contract basis for the past 1.5 years. I am pregnant and looking for maternity leave but my company is saying I will not be entitled to get as im on contract, my contract letter does not state this anywhere, I need to understand can I fight for the same.
Kindly guide at the earliest.

Hi Moni,
Maternity leave will not be affected by the type of employment in which the employee is associated with any company. In the past there were cases, wherein the employer had denied the maternity benefit to female employees on contract. In one such case the employee had filed a suit in court and the court favored the employee stating "The High Court held that maternity benefit is a social and legal acknowledgement for a women and denial of such benefit on the basis that the employee is a contract worker is not legal; while also directing the employer to sanction her leave benefit".
Would recommend you not to fight and throw them the knowledge of maternity benefits for a contract employee :)