The Bombay High Court on Friday dismissed a plea seeking to reveal identities of COVID-19 patients stating it concerns with the privacy of the individuals.
A division bench of Justices A A Sayed and M S Karnik made the observation while hearing hearing a petition filed by two persons seeking disclosure of the names to enable contact tracing and prevent others from getting infected.
The petition stated, when the fundamental right to life and right to lead a healthy life clash with the fundamental right to privacy, then the court needs to see which of these rights would advance public morality and interest.
The bench said "How far can one go in revealing the identity of the person who has tested positive (for Covid-19)? Privacy rights are involved.”
Justice Sayed further said, “The authorities declare a particular place or building as a containment zone when someone tests positive so that people are made aware. Isn’t this enough? Why do you want to know who is the person who has tested positive?"
The Bombay High Court also directed the Maharashtra government to file a response to the petition. The next hearing in the case has been deferred till two weeks.
