Plea in Delhi HC seeks direction to Centre to frame laws for private detectives

A plea has been moved in the Delhi High Court seeking direction to the Centre through the Ministry of Law and Justice to enact laws and guidelines regulating the activities of private detectives on account of their conduct being in violation of Article 21 of the Constitution of India.

The petition further seeks direction to constitute a State Board, comprising of a member from the Judiciary, from the State Home Department, a member from the State Intelligence Department, a member from the State Police Department, a nominee member from the National Human Rights Commission of India and two eminent personalities.

The matter on Monday got adjourned for February 21 as the main counsel from the petitioner side was unwell. The matter was listed before the bench of Justices DN Patel and Jyoti Singh.

The petitioner, Radha Bisht, through Advocate Preeti Singh stated that due to the Private Detective Agencies (Regulation) Bill of 2007 pending in the parliament for the last 13 years, it has fallen through and expired, therefore there is no law governing the activities of private detectives and their agencies.

The plea stated that due to such absence of any law governing the activities of private detectives, people being a victim of abuse, people being violated of their right to privacy, people being cheated or offended otherwise, have no statutory law to invoke against the agencies and make them liable. Such inability to make private detective agencies liable before any court of law or authority enables them to operate in any manner which they feel to be suitable for them.

A work of a private detective lacking accountability with respect to its modus operandi enables violation of fundamental rights of the citizens of this Nation enriched under Article 21 of the Constitution of India, added the plea.

The petitioner, like many others, is a victim of unregularized activities of a private detective appointed by her husband who is stalking her, violating her privacy and defaming her in public. The Petitioner stated that she is a victim of domestic violence and her husband through a private detective agency stalking her violated her right to privacy in public, the plea stated.

( With inputs from ANI )

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