NEWS: The Delhi High Courtà dealt with a   petition involving the Right to be ForgottenàThe judgment reignited the debate on balancing privacy rights with public access to judicial records.

the Principle of Open Justice

• Open Justiceà A constitutional principle that judicial proceedings should be open and accessible to the public.
• Promotes transparency and accountability in the judicial system.
• Enables citizens to understand how courts function and how laws are interpreted.
• Creates a historical record of judicial decisions and the administration of justice.
• Public scrutiny of court proceedings helps strengthen trust in the judiciary.

Right to be Forgotten (RTBF)

• Refers to an individual's ability to have personal information removed or restricted from public access under certain circumstances.
• Linked to the broader concept of informational privacy.
• Aims to protect individuals from indefinite public exposure of personal information, especially when such information no longer serves a public purpose

Constitutional Basis of RTBF in India

• The Supreme Court recognized the Right to Privacy as a fundamental right in the landmark Justice K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India (2017) judgment.
• Informational privacy à identified as an important component of the right to privacyà Informational privacy includes the ability of individuals to exercise some control over personal information related to them.
• The Right to be Forgottenà considered an emerging aspect of this informational privacy framework.

Impact of Digitisation of Court Records

• Increased access to judicial records.
• Court judgments can now be searched and accessed by anyone with an internet connection.
• Search engines and online legal databasesà made judicial information easily discoverable.
• Improves transparency, increases the long-term visibility of personal information.
• Information that would previously have remained difficult to access can now remain permanently available online.

The Core Issue: Incompleteness of Records

• If a person was acquitted or discharged by a courtà that outcome should be prominently reflected whenever the case is searched.
• Simply limiting access to earlier records may distort the public record.
• Public records should present the complete legal history rather than only accusations or initial proceedings

Importance of Maintaining Judicial Records

• Judicial records are official acts of the State.
• Form an important part of the public record and legal history.
• Any attempt to obscure/remove parts of these records may affect transparency and accountability.
• Open justiceà requires that court records remain practically accessible and meaningful to the public.

Reference to Indian Kanoon Case (2024)

• The court in that matter emphasized the importance of maintaining public access to judicial records.
• It highlighted concerns regarding the obfuscation or concealment of official judicial records

Digital Accuracy as a Solution

• Court records should remain publicly accessible while also being updated to reflect final outcomes.
• If a person is acquitted or discharged, that information should be clearly visible.
• Legal databases and court registries should regularly update their records.
• Search results should provide complete context rather than selective information.

Balancing Privacy and Open Justice

• The objective should be to balance two important constitutional values.
• The first is the Right to Privacy, including informational privacy.
• The second is the principle of Open Justice and transparency.
• Neither principle should completely override the other.
• A balanced approach can protect individual dignity while preserving public trust in the justice system.