The Supreme Court today said that privacy is a constitutional right.
The Supreme Court today pronounced that individual privacy is a fundamental right protected by the Constitution. The judges said privacy comes under the Right To Life and Liberty. The centre had argued that the constitution does not guarantee individual privacy as an inalienable fundamental right. The judges concluded today, "The 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". The order is based on an array of petitions that have challenged the mandatory use of Aadhaar cards which assign a unique 12-digit ID to every citizen. The Aadhaar database links iris scans and fingerprints to more than a billion people.
Below is the full text of Supreme Court judgement on privacy: