Supreme Court: Facial Recognition Issue in NEET Protest Case to Be Heard Separately

The Supreme Court on Tuesday continued its hearing on allegations of police excesses during protests against the NEET-UG examination, with the Bench indicating that the separate issue of facial recognition technology (FRS) used during those protests would be examined independently. The primary focus of the current proceedings, the Court said, remains on whether excessive force was used against protesters.

During the hearing, advocate Hariharan argued that the use of facial recognition systems by police raised serious questions about the right to privacy. He submitted that the data of ordinary persons was being retained and that this was impermissible. Senior advocate Menaka Guruswamy added that private companies were being used to store data captured through FRS, further complicating the matter.

Justice Bagchi, presiding over the Bench, observed that the facial recognition issue would be heard separately, noting that it had been examined on the question of proportionality and not under Article 21 of the Constitution. The Bench clarified that the immediate purpose of the current hearing was to determine the ambit of a high-powered committee tasked with investigating allegations of police excesses.

Solicitor General Mehta, appearing for the authorities, stated that FRS was used only to identify hardened criminals already listed in the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) database and did not target ordinary citizens. He said facial recognition was merely the first step, followed by physical verification of a person's whereabouts.

Advocate Hariharan contested this claim, asserting that the authorities could not employ such technology at all in the protest context, and that data of individuals unconnected to any criminal record was also being retained. The Court, however, deferred a detailed examination of these submissions to a later stage.

The proceedings are part of a broader legal scrutiny into the handling of protests that erupted in several states over irregularities alleged in the NEET-UG examination. Petitioners have accused police of using excessive force against students, leading to the demand for an independent investigation. The Supreme Court is expected to continue hearing arguments on the scope of the committee in subsequent sessions.