​​XXXX v. High Court of Karnataka
In the High Court of Karnataka
​​W.P. 25557/2023 (GM-RES)​
Before Justice M. Nagaprasanna
Decided on ​February 28, 2024

Relevancy of the case: Recognition of the right to be forgotten in the context of removal of one’s name from the High Court’s digital records after acquittal

Statutes and Provisions Involved

• The Information Technology Act, 2000
• The Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Section 354A, 354B)
• The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (Section 12)

Relevant Facts of the Case

• The complainant alleged that the petitioner exchanged lewd text messages with his daughter. On investigation, the police found the case to be false and filed a ‘B’ report.
• The court accepted the ‘B’ report and dismissed the case.
• The petitioner’s name continues to be displayed as an accused in search engines. This has severely affected his and his brothers’ job opportunities.

Prominent Arguments by the Advocates

• The petitioner’s counsel argued that the police did not file a chargesheet against him. The court’s digital records depicting him as an accused have put him in a jobless position. She contended that every human being has a right to live with dignity.
• The respondent’s counsel submitted that the court only masks a victim’s name in the digital records. She states that being discharged on a ‘B’ report does not mean the petitioner is not an accused.

Opinion of the Bench

• Individuals acquitted of charges have a right to live with dignity without the shadow of past allegations affecting their lives and careers.
• The right to oblivion is a part of the right to informational privacy. These principles became a part of Article 21 in the case of Justice K.S. Puttaswamy.
• The court also discussed the evolving nature of laws concerning privacy rights, citing international examples and domestic legal developments.

Final Decision

• The court allowed the writ petition and directed the Registrar General to mask the petitioner’s name in its digital records.

Harmannat Kour, an undergraduate student at the Law School, University of Jammu, and Kashish Saxena, an undergraduate student at the National Law University, Jodhpur, prepared this case summary during their internship with The Cyber Blog India in May/June 2024.