Back in 2012, Justice Puttaswamy decided to file a writ petition before the Supreme Court of India, challenging the constitutional validity of the Aadhar Scheme which was brought about by the Government of India.
On 24 August 2017, in a unanimous judgment delivered in Justice K.S. Puttaswamy (Retd.) v. Union of India, the Supreme Court held that the right to privacy is intrinsic to the right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution and is, therefore, a fundamental right. The decision significantly expanded the scope of individual liberties, placing limitations on the state’s actions that could infringe upon privacy.
One of the major arguments in this case was that there was no ‘safeguard’ for a citizen’s private sphere. On the other hand, the government argued that there is no fundamental right with respect to privacy under Part III of the Indian Constitution.
Further, it was held that the State is duty-bound to protect the privacy of an individual…