<h1>India's Supreme Court Recognizes Right to Privacy as Fundamental under Article 21, Calls for Strong Data Protection Laws.</h1> The Supreme Court of India, in a landmark judgment by a nine-judge bench, affirmed the right to privacy as a fundamental right under the Indian Constitution. This decision, arising from a case involving retired Justice Puttaswamy, emphasizes that privacy is intrinsic to life and personal liberty, protected under Article 21. The court highlighted that while privacy is not absolute, any governmental intrusion must meet criteria of legality, necessity, and proportionality. The judgment overruled previous decisions in MP Sharma and partly in Kharak Singh, and urged the government to establish a robust data protection framework, balancing individual privacy with state interests.