In an important judgment, the Madras High Court has ruled that phone tapping cannot be allowed for the purpose of crime detection, including corruption cases. The court said that such actions would be a violation of the right to privacy, which is protected under the Constitution.
Justice N. Anand Venkatesh made this decision while rejecting a request from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). The ministry had asked the court to allow phone tapping as a tool for investigating crimes. The judge said that only the legislature, and not the courts, can change or expand the law on this matter.
He pointed out that Section 5(2) of the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 clearly limits phone tapping to only two situations — a public emergency or public safety concerns. He called this the “Lakshman Rekha” that should not be crossed casually, as phone tapping is a serious invasion of a person’s privacy.
Justice Venkatesh added that courts are meant to act as protectors of fundamental rights, not as lawmakers. He explained that the right to privacy has a long history and was finally recognised as part of Article 21 of the Constitution by the Supreme Court in the 1996 PUCL case, and later confirmed in the 2019 K.S. Puttaswamy case.
The judgment makes it clear that any attempt to widen the use of phone tapping must come through a law passed by Parliament, not through court rulings or executive decisions.