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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