Supreme Court questions WhatsApp over privacy policy

New Delhi, May 17: The Supreme Court of India has questioned internet messaging service WhatsApp over its privacy policy, saying the tenor of its 2016 user licence policy seemed to indicate the company was undermining the right of free communication. A five-judge Constitution bench presided over by Justice Dipak Misra said the court would intervene to ensure the rights of citizens to communicate freely were protected.

“We are the data protection authority here. You can’t violate Indian laws only to widen the language of your policy. We will protect rights of our citizens to communicate freely,” the bench said. There is no specific law governing data protection or right to privacy in the country. The company had earlier raised the issue that the right to privacy was still to be adjudicated upon by the apex court in Aadhaar matter.

“It is our constitutional duty to protect citizens’ rights. We don’t think any person would want all his data shared with others. You can’t apply different standards of data protection in India,” the bench, also comprising Justices A K Sikri, Amitava Roy, A M Khanwilkar and Mohan M Shatanagoundar, said. During the hearing, the bench sought to know if WhatsApp had given an undertaking before a court in the European Union not to share users’ data.

Though the counsel contended there was an interim order and the company has filed an appeal against it, the bench asked, “Why shouldn’t we also do it here?” Advocate Madhvi Divan, appearing for the petitioners, submitted that WhatsApp was performing a public function as it does not have its own network and used telecom service providers.

The petition was filed by two students contending that the 2016 agreement by WhatsApp with Facebook violated their fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression, among others. The court listed the petition for further consideration on July 21.