Bengal, Karnataka, 2 others move SC in favour of right to privacy

Three non-BJP ruled states and Puducherry moved the Supreme Court today seeking to intervene in the ongoing hearing on the issue of whether the ‘Right to Privacy’ can be declared as one of the fundamental rights under the Constitution.

The three states — Karnataka, West Bengal, Punjab — and the union territory of Puducherry — took a stand opposite to the Central government’s which had said that the right to privacy is a common law right and not a fundamental right.

Representing them, senior advocate Kapil Sibal initiated his arguments before a nine-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice J S Khehar and said that in the light of technological advancement, the court needed to take a fresh look on the right to privacy and its contours in the modern day. “Privacy cannot be an absolute right. But it is a fundamental right. This court needs to strike a balance,” he added.

The petitioners of this ongoing hearing have claimed that collection and sharing of biometric information, as required under the Aadhaar scheme, was a breach of the “fundamental” right to privacy. The apex court, on July 18, had set up this nine-judge Constitution bench after the matter was referred to a larger bench by a five-judge bench.

The Centre, on July 19, had submitted in the apex court that right to privacy cannot fall in the bracket of fundamental rights as there are binding decisions of larger benches that it is only a common law right evolved through judicial pronouncements.

The hearing on the matter is in progress.

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