Court has no power to add fundamental rights in Constitution, says Rohatgi

Former Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi on Thursday said a court has no power to engraft more fundamental rights in the Constitution as the right to make a law or amend it belongs to the Parliament. Reacting to the Supreme Court verdict declaring right to privacy a fundamental right, the senior advocate said, “There is much ado about nothing” as the government had already agreed with the stand taken by the petitioners and the court. “The fundamental rights are engrafted in the Constitution so they have to be physically put in a book called the Constitution. The right belongs to the Parliament, to make the law, amend the law, and repeal the law. The court has no power to engraft more fundamental rights in the Constitution,” Rohatgi said.