Aadhaar row : Right to privacy can't be elevated as fundamental right, Centre tells SC

The Union Government on Wednesday maintained before the Supreme Court that right to privacy cannot be elevated to as a fundamental right. It cannot be read into right to life and liberty.

"Right to privacy was omitted from being mentioned in the Constitution, though it was debated in the Constituent Assembly," Attorney General K K Venugopal submitted before a nine-judge bench presided over by Chief Justice J S Khehar.

Opening the Centre's arguments, he said even the right to life and liberty guaranteed as a fundamental right is not absolute and can be taken away by the state under the procedure established by law like in case of death penalty and incarceration for life. The procedure has to be "just, fair and reasonable" as enjoined under the Maneka Gandhi case, he said.

At the outset, as many as five states including Karnataka sought to intervene into the matter, supporting a group of Aadhaar challengers. They sought a declaration from the top court that the right to privacy is a fundamental right.

In his arguments, Venugopal submitted nobody can object to if the Supreme Court decided to expand the scope of Article 21 to include right to privacy but it was his duty to place relevant materials which did not support such a demand.

He submitted it can't be anybody's plea that he won't give his biometrics, address, telephone number, identity details etc to the state as right to privacy is elevated as a fundamental right.

In a country with 270 million people living below poverty line, Aadhaar has come as a great tool to prevent diversion of funds, meant for the welfare of poor people. He said a recent World Bank report stated that Aadhaar is something which every developing country should adopt.

Earlier, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Karnataka, West Bengal, Punjab and Puducherry, submitted that the right to privacy is inalineable natural right which finds its manifestation in different parts of the Constitution.

He said in the present age, technology has become all-pervasive as well as all-invasive. It has to be ensured that precincts of my house is not invaded, he said. Congress-ruled Himachal Pradesh also supported Sibal.