Centre withdraws Personal Data Protection Bill 2019, to announce new legislation soon
Tech giants like Meta, Google and Amazon were some of the companies that had expressed their concerns about the recommendations by the joint parliamentary committee on the proposed bill.
On August 3, the Indian government withdrew the long-awaited Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019. The bill drew stringent drawback from several privacy advocates and tech giants, fearing that the legislation could restrict how they managed sensitive information while giving sweeping powers to the government.
Tech giants like Meta, Google and Amazon were some of the companies that had expressed their concerns about the recommendations by the joint parliamentary committee on the proposed bill.
Addressing the members of the Joint Parliamentary Committee, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology Minister, Ashwini Vaishnaw, said,”The Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019 was deliberated in great detail by the Joint Committee of Parliament. 81 amendments were proposed and 12 recommendations were made towards comprehensive legal framework on digital ecosystem.”
“Considering the report of the JCP, a comprehensive legal framework is being worked upon. Hence, in the circumstances, it is proposed to withdraw ‘The Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019’ and present a new bill that fits into the comprehensive legal framework,” added Ashwini Vaishnaw.
The bill unveiled in the Lok Sabha on December 11, 2019, aimed to empower Indian citizens with rights relating to their data. However, a New Delhi-based privacy advocacy group Internet Freedom Foundation had scrutinised the bill, for providing large exemptions to government departments, prioritising the interests of big corporations, and not adequately respecting the user’s fundamental right to privacy.
India’s Junior IT Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar said,”The Joint Parliamentary Committee’s report on the Personal Data Protection Bill had identified many issues that were relevant but beyond the scope of a modern digital privacy law.”
“This will soon be replaced by a comprehensive framework of global standard laws including digital privacy laws for contemporary and future challenges,” Chandrasekhar expressed.
