Supreme Court to Deliberate on the 'Right to be Forgotten' in Judicial Records
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The Supreme Court is examining whether the 'Right to be Forgotten' allows individuals to have their personal details removed from public court judgments. This case balances the 'open court' principle of transparency against the fundamental right to privacy in the digital age.
The Supreme Court of India has recently agreed to examine the 'Right to be Forgotten' (RTBF) within the context of judicial records. This legal inquiry focuses on whether individuals can request the removal of their personal information from court judgments that are publicly accessible online. The case highlights a growing tension between the 'open court' principle, which mandates transparency in the justice system, and the fundamental right to privacy in a digital era where information is permanent and easily searchable.
The 'Right to be Forgotten' allows individuals to seek the deletion of personal data that is no longer necessary, relevant, or is causing them undue harm. While the landmark K.S. Puttaswamy judgment (2017) recognized the right to privacy as a fundamental right under Article 21, the specific application of RTBF to judicial records remains a grey area. Currently, many individuals find that even after being acquitted or having their cases settled, the digital record of their past legal troubles continues to affect their social standing, employment opportunities, and personal lives—a phenomenon often termed 'digital stigma.'
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