What is right to privacy?
Right to Privacy is an integral part of Right to Liberty. Right to life and right to
liberty are also inherent rights of Man. They are not given by any statute
including the constitution. Therefore, they cannot be taken away or even
suspended. They can only be restricted or regulated that too in the compelling
interest of the state and the society. Even the manner of regulating and
implementing the regulation state had to be just fair and reasonable. The
restriction cannot go beyond the need of the society.
There is a difference between fundamental rights mentioned in the constitution
and inherent rights e.g. the first instance the fundamental right mentioned in the
constitution are only some aspects of the right to life and liberty. Therefore,
those fundamental rights which are only some aspects of the rights of life and
liberty cannot also be suspended or taken away even during emergency; they
can only be restricted or regulated. But today our constitution stays that these
fundamental rights mentioned in the constitution except the rights mentioned in
the article 20 and 21 can be suspended.
Now in view of recognition by the Supreme Court that the privacy is an inherent
right of the man, even the other fundamental rights e.g. those mentioned in
article 19(1) (freedom of speech and expression, right to assemble peacefully,
right to carry on any business, occupation and profession, right to organize any
association, etc.) they cannot be suspended.
They can only be regulated or restricted as an inherent right to liberty, because
they are only aspect of inherent right to liberty. Therefore even provision made
in article 359 excepting in only the right mentioned in article 20 and 21 can be
challenged. All the fundamental rights which are the aspects of inherent right to
life and liberty.
