SC ruling on digital accessibility as part of right to life and liberty can bridge the digital divide

Economic Times

30-04-2025

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court delivered a landmark judgment in the 'Pragya Prasun vs Union of India' and 'Amar Jain vs Union of India' cases, declaring the right to digital access as an intrinsic part of the right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution. Authored by Justice R Mahadevan, and pronounced by a bench including Justice J B Pardiwala, the ruling addressed the exclusion of persons with disabilities, particularly acid attack survivors and visually impaired individuals, from digital KYC (eKYC) processes.The court issued 20 directions to revise eKYC norms, ensuring accessibility for these groups, who face challenges with tasks like blinking or facial positioning during biometric registration due to physical impairments. This judgment, prompted by PILs highlighting systemic barriers, underscores the state's obligation to create an inclusive digital ecosystem, as digital platforms are now gatekeepers to essential services like banking, e-governance and welfare schemes.
Wednesday's ruling invoked Articles 14, 15 and 21 of the Constitution - 'golden triangle' of fundamental rights, guaranteeing equality, non-discrimination, and protection of life and liberty - to emphasise substantive equality, aiming to bridge the digital divide for marginalised communities.The court judgment is very welcome. It sets right a gap persisting for some years now with the introduction and proliferation of digital technologies in governance ecosystems. For a nation striving to position itself as a global digital leader, ensuring universal digital access isn't merely a policy goal, it's an imperative for inclusive development and equitable participation in the digital economy.According to 2011 census, about 2.68 cr - 1.50 cr male and 1.18 cr female - Indians live with disabilities, constituting 2.21% of the population. Of these, around 50.6 lakh individuals have visual impairments, and 19.9 lakh have speech or vocal disabilities. These figures, though dated, highlight the scale of the challenge, very likely amplified by population growth and underreporting.
The digital divide further exacerbates exclusion, with rural populations, senior citizens, economically weaker sections and linguistic minorities often lacking access to devices or digital literacy. For instance, many poor households cannot afford smartphones, and those seeking work through MGNREGA portal face barriers due to complex registration processes and lack of technical know-how, perpetuating further economic marginalisation.Enforcing the right to digital access under Article 21 in the age of AI presents both opportunities and challenges. AI-driven assistive technologies - such as screen readers, voice recognition and alternative authentication methods - can certainly enhance accessibility for persons with different abilities. For example, AI could enable voice-based eKYC for visually-impaired users, or adaptive interfaces for those with facial disfigurements.The ruling's impact reverberates across multiple domains, necessitating robust policy interventions. Digital accessibility as a fundamental right demands that government portals, educational platforms and fintech services adopt universal design principles, integrating tools like audio descriptions and tactile interfaces that the Supreme Court has also listed in the judgment.
Reforming eKYC requires policymakers to redefine 'live photograph' in RBI's 'KYC Master Direction' and introduce alternatives like biometric exemptions or offline verification. Bridging the digital divide calls for initiatives like Digital India to prioritise rural connectivity and digital literacy programmes, ensuring that economically weaker sections can access schemes like MGNREGA.
Economic opportunities can be unlocked by enabling persons with disabilities to participate in digital banking and ecommerce, boosting inclusion. Privacy and security in accessible systems must balance relaxed KYC requirements with robust encryption to prevent fraud. Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act 2016 should guide accessibility standards, with mandatory audits for government and private platforms. Globally, India can advocate for digital inclusion at fora like UN, setting a precedent for equitable digital ecosystems. To ensure inclusivity for the 19.9 lakh individuals who can see but cannot speak, policymakers must adopt targeted technological and policy interventions. For this group, integrating text-based and visual input systems into digital platforms, such as eKYC processes, will allow users to type responses or select visual cues (e.g., OTP entry or image selection) instead of relying on voice authentication. This will ensure seamless access to banking and government services.Also, gesture-based interfaces, powered by AI-driven computer vision, should be implemented to enable users to confirm actions through hand movements or facial expressions, as seen in platforms like MGNREGA portals, enhancing independent navigation. Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) apps should be pre-installed on subsidised smartphones distributed through government schemes, enabling users to generate text or visual outputs for identity verification and communication.To address technical challenges, AI-powered visual authentication systems, focusing on static cues like iris scanning, should be standardised across platforms, with compliance enforced under the RPwD Act, while ensuring data privacy through encrypted systems aligned with Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023. Clearly, quick implementation of provisions would provide much-needed succour for many being denied digital access and protection so far, due to their vulnerabilities.