Privacy In The Digital Era: A Jurisprudential Study Of Article 21 And Data Protection Frameworks

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Bandana Devi Thokchom, Ph.D. Research Scholar, Manipur International University

Prof. S. James, Dean, Department of Law, Manipur International University

ABSTRACT

The digital revolution has profoundly reshaped the architecture of governance, commerce, and human interaction, creating unprecedented opportunities for connectivity while simultaneously intensifying the tension between privacy and surveillance. In India, the constitutional foundation of privacy is firmly anchored in Article 21 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to life and personal liberty. Judicial interpretation, most notably in Justice K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India (2017), has elevated privacy to the status of a fundamental right, intrinsic to dignity, autonomy, and democratic participation. This recognition situates privacy not merely as a defensive entitlement against intrusion but as a proactive guarantee enabling individuals to engage securely in digital society. The doctrinal analysis undertaken in this paper explores the jurisprudential evolution of Article 21, tracing its expansion from a narrow procedural safeguard to a dynamic repository of substantive rights. By situating privacy within Article 21’s broad guarantee, the study demonstrates how constitutional interpretation has bridged domestic law with international human rights frameworks, drawing upon instruments such as the ICCPR and the ECHR. Yet, the digital era presents challenges that transcend traditional boundaries: algorithmic profiling, biometric surveillance, and cross-border data flows expose the fragility of privacy protections when technological innovation outpaces legislative and judicial responses. Comparative analysis highlights divergences between India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDP) 2023 and global benchmarks such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the European Union and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). While GDPR operationalizes privacy through expansive rights, independent regulators, and algorithmic accountability, India’s DPDP Act remains narrower, centralized, and limited in enforcement scope. This doctrinal gap underscores the need for harmonization between Article 21’s constitutional guarantee and statutory frameworks that can effectively safeguard individual rights in the digital age. The findings reveal three critical dimensions: first, the doctrinal adequacy of Article 21 as a constitutional anchor for privacy; second, the enforcement gaps and legislative inertia that weaken India’s statutory framework; and third, the socio-political realities—national security surveillance, corporate data commodification, and limited public awareness—that complicate operationalization of privacy rights. The study argues that privacy must be reconceptualized as a non-derogable enabling right, empowering individuals to participate freely in democratic, economic, and social life.

Keywords: Privacy, Article 21, Data Protection, Digital Rights, Surveillance, Social life.

619. PRIVACY IN THE DIGITAL ERA- A JURISPRUDENTIAL STUDY OF ARTICLE 21 AND DATA PROTECTION

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