NYERI, Kenya — A fresh legal battle has emerged after two activists moved to the Employment and Labour Relations Court in Nyeri seeking the reinstatement of 18 female police recruits allegedly dismissed from the National Police College, Kiganjo, after testing positive for pregnancy.
The petition, filed against the National Police Service Commission, the Inspector General of Police, and the Attorney General, argues that the dismissals were unlawful, discriminatory, and unconstitutional.
According to court documents, the women were among nearly 10,000 recruits selected during the nationwide police recruitment exercise conducted in November 2025.
The recruits had already reported to the National Police College Kiganjo for basic training before being subjected to mandatory pregnancy tests.
The petition states that the 18 women who tested positive were immediately dismissed from the programme.
The activists argue that the affected recruits were already pregnant before joining the college and did not conceive during training.
They further claim there is no law or publicly gazetted policy within the police service that provides for automatic dismissal of recruits on grounds of pregnancy.
“The blanket application of pregnancy as an automatic disqualifier for female police recruits is discriminatory on its face,” the petition states.
The suit accuses the police service of violating the women’s constitutional rights, including the right to equality, human dignity, fair labour practices, and fair administrative action.
The petitioners also fault the authorities for allegedly failing to explore alternative measures such as deferred training, temporary leave, or re-admission into future intakes after childbirth and postpartum recovery.
The activists are now seeking court orders compelling the reinstatement of the recruits into the next available police training intake.
They also want the court to direct the police service to formulate a constitutionally compliant policy governing pregnancy during police recruitment and training.
In addition, the petition seeks conservatory orders barring the dismissal of recruits solely on the grounds of pregnancy until such a policy is developed.
