Personal data bill not enough to protect citizens' rights: Advocacy group

 

A proposed legislation does not prioritise the rights of Indians over their data in the public and has instead expanded to areas beyond its ambit and without sufficient consultation, senior executives at digital rights organisation Access Now have said.

The Personal Data Protection (PDP) legislation--in the making since 2018—will be tabled in Parliament’s Winter Session beginning Monday. Reports and dissent notes filed by the members of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) deliberating the Bill suggest several changes from its initial draft in 2019. Social media seems to have been included in the legislation.

“Based on the reports so far and the details shared by MPs involved in the process, it is clear that this is not currently the Privacy and Data Protection law that India needs. The current draft does not adequately protect people's right to privacy and autonomy or enable strict accountability, particularly from the government,” said Raman Jit Singh Chima, Asia Pacific Policy Director and Senior International Counsel, and Namrata Maheshwari, Asia Pacific Policy Counsel, at Access Now.

"…Parliament will have to amend the draft to incorporate safeguards in line with the Supreme Court's rulings on privacy and international human rights standards,” they said.

As data breaches and financial frauds increase, India needs a sound legislation for data protection. The JPC adopted the Bill last week, amid criticism from some MPs that the government had given itself a wide berth on a host of issues.

“The recent public furore and parliamentary, judicial discussion around the NSO Pegasus revelations also demonstrate that India's surveillance law framework is outmoded and needs urgent overhaul to better regulate and oversee how government agencies can access our personal data. Further, the government has a strong grip over the composition and functioning of the proposed Data Protection Authority which severely undermines its independence, authority and ability to safeguard privacy,” said Cheema and Maheshwari, referring to the Israeli spyware.

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