Today, the Supreme Court will give its verdict on the statement, whether privacy is a fundamental right and will it be protected by the Constitution. At 10:30 A.M., the rare nine member bench will deliver their stand. The hearing will be based on a number of petitions that challenge the compulsory use of the Aadhaar card that assigns a 12 digit unique code to every citizen.
Although, the government is arguing that the Constitution at present cannot guarantee privacy for every individual as a Fundamental Right.
The Judges have said that the court will not decide the reach of the Aadhaar card. This verdict will be done by a smaller bench later.
The lawyer for the petitioners, Gopal Subramanium argued their case in front of the nine judges and said, “Our Constitution gives us the liberty to live life. Liberty existed even before the constitution was drafted and it includes privacy. There cannot be a question of diminution but expansion of a right. Right to liberty includes freedom from encroachment on his or her privacy.”
The government over time has made Aadhaar card a must for availing all kinds of services from opening bank accounts to cash transfers and vehicle registration in some states as well. The government has been getting a lot of criticism on this front, on the basis that the 2009 program set up by Congress will act as a threat to civil liberties.
The petitioners also argue that if the Aadhaar card necessity continues, every individual’s information from their spending habits to properties owned will be available to the government. The petitioners fear the information can be misused, stripping the citizens of the right to privacy.
The issues have been raised after reports in May revealed that nearly 135 million people’s Aadhaar details were leaked online. Some of the leaks happened on the official government page.
Update: The Supreme Court gave its judgement on the Right to Privacy and declared that it is, in fact, a Fundamental right. The verdict said, “Right to privacy is protected as an intrinsic part of the right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 and as a part of the freedoms guaranteed by Part III of the Constitution.”
This verdict will greatly impact the case on linking Aadhar cards for every service for every individual. This is a plus point for the petitioners who have been concerned about citizens personal details being misused.
