Right To Privacy Vis a Vis Freedom of Media: A Critical Appraisal

In the Indian Society the right to privacy has become a fundamental human right, which is implicit under the right to life and personal liberty. Every citizen of India has a right to privacy or right to be let alone and has the right to safeguard his own privacy, that of his family, marriage, procreation motherhood, child bearing, education etc. and no person can publish anything relating to such matters without the consent of the person concerned. The right to freedom of speech and expression and the right to privacy are two sides of the same coin. One person's right to know and be informed may violate another's right to be left alone. Just as the freedom of speech and expression is vital for the dissemination of information on matters of public interest, it is equally important to safeguard the private life of an individual to the extent that it is unrelated to public duties or matters of public interest. The law of privacy endeavours to balance these competing freedoms. However, the freedom of media can't infringe the right to privacy.