Mon Sep 22 10:42:54 UTC 2025: **Summary of Text**
The Karnataka High Court will hear arguments on September 23, 2025, regarding a plea to stay the Socio-Economic and Educational Survey being conducted by the Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes. Petitioners argue the survey violates privacy by geo-tagging residents and linking data to Aadhaar, conflicting with the Aadhaar Act of 2016. They also challenge the state’s authority to collect such data. The court initially planned to hear the case after the Dasara vacation, but due to the survey’s imminent completion, the court has agreed to hear the arguments on the petition for a stay. The petitions were filed by various community organizations like Rajya Vokkaliga Sangha and Akhila Karnataka Brahmana Mahasabha, among others.

**News Article**

**Karnataka High Court to Hear Arguments on Stay of Socio-Economic Survey Amid Privacy Concerns**

**Bengaluru, September 22, 2025** – The Karnataka High Court announced today that it will hear arguments tomorrow, September 23, concerning a petition to stay the ongoing Socio-Economic and Educational Survey conducted by the Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes.

The survey, intended to update existing data, has faced legal challenges from multiple community organizations, including the Rajya Vokkaliga Sangha and Akhila Karnataka Brahmana Mahasabha. The petitioners argue that the survey infringes upon the privacy rights of residents by proposing to geo-tag them and link the data to their Aadhaar cards. They claim this is in direct violation of the Aadhaar (Targetted deliver of financial and other subsidies, benefits and services) Act, 2016, and challenges the state’s legal authority to conduct such an exercise.

During the hearing today, a division bench led by Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru initially suggested postponing the hearing until after the Dasara vacation. However, advocates for the petitioners emphasized the urgency of the matter, as the data collection process is scheduled to conclude by October 6, before the courts reopen.

Senior Advocate Prabhuling K. Navadgi, representing some of the petitioners, highlighted the irreversible nature of the data collection.

Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing the State Government, stated that the current survey is simply an update to previous data and that the collected information could be reversed if the court deemed the survey illegal.

The court expressed skepticism about the possibility of reversing data collection and agreed to hear arguments regarding a stay on the survey’s data collection process tomorrow afternoon. The outcome of this hearing could have significant implications for the future of the socio-economic survey and data privacy rights within the state.

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