
The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice, returnable within four weeks, on an application seeking to restrain WhatsApp from implementing its new privacy policy in India and to direct it to apply the privacy policy which is made applicable to users in European region.
"People have grave concerns about their privacy. You may be 2 trillion 3 trillion company. But the privacy of people are more important than your money," the CJI remarked.
The CJI observed that people have grave concerns about their right to privacy with respect to Whatsapp's new policy and directed the company to explain its stance by filing a counter affidavit within 4 weeks.
It said that people's privacy must be protected in view of the allegation that users' data being shared with other companies.
The Bench also said it will have to consider if a similar petition, pending before the Delhi High Court, is maintainable when a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court is already seized with the matter.
WhatsApp and Facebook have refuted the Centre's allegation of users' data sharing. It told the court that same privacy policy is applicable to all countries except European nations which have special data protection law.
The top court had in 2017 referred social media platform WhatsApp's privacy policy matter to a constitution bench saying it concerns the larger issue of privacy and right to personal liberty.
The appeal filed in SC by Karmanya Singh Sareen and Shreya Sethi assailed the Delhi high court verdict on the ground that no relief was granted for data shared by users post-September 25, 2016, and it amounted to an infringement of fundamental rights under Article 19 (Freedom of Speech and Expression) and 21 (Right to Life) of the Constitution.