New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday wondered how Madras High Court could direct a law portal to pull down a judgment, revealing the identity of a person acquitted in a sexual assault case, as it becomes part of the public record and stressed that it will have "serious ramifications".
A three-judge bench led by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud said it will examine whether an accused has the right to be forgotten by seeking removal of judgments, and having his name, from the public domain.
The bench, also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, stayed an order passed by the Madras High Court, which had asked a law portal to remove from its website a verdict. In March, the High Court directed the portal to take down the copy of the judgment which revealed the identity of a person acquitted in a sexual assault case.
Examining the matter, the CJI said the judgments are part of public records and the orders for their removal by the courts will have serious ramifications. "We will have to settle the law…issue notice, in the meantime the directions of Madras High Court shall remain stayed", said the bench.
During the hearing, the bench noted that if it were to be assumed that the person was acquitted then how can the High Court direct the law portal to pull down the judgement? The bench stressed that once a judgment is delivered, it becomes part of the public record.
The apex court made these observations while hearing an appeal filed by the "India Kanoon" portal challenging the Madras High Court order. The High Court had said that though the courts were expected to preserve data as a court of record, there is a need to strike a balance between the collection of such data and the protection of a person's personnel data.
