LI Network
Published on: 4 August 2023 at 10:10 IST
Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw, presented the Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2023, in the Lok Sabha, emphasizing that it was not a money bill.
Addressing opposition leaders who were against the bill, Vaishnaw clarified that it was a general bill, not related to financial matters, and invited thorough discussions on various aspects, including the Puttaswamy case and compensation concerns.
However, Congress politician and former Union minister, Manish Tewari, disapproved of the bill’s introduction as a money bill. He raised concerns about its contradiction with the right to privacy judgment and highlighted that it treated NGOs and the government differently, potentially violating the principles set by the Puttaswamy case.
Other leaders also expressed their opposition. Asaduddin Owaisi, President of All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen, criticized the bill as a violation of the right to privacy, impacting freedom of speech and religion. Supriya Sule, an MP, pointed out excessive centralization of data, granting extensive control to the government. She urged the inclusion of a compensation clause for victims.
Shashi Tharoor, former Chairman of the parliamentary standing committee, called for the bill to be sent to the standing committee for further examination, as the different versions presented by the government lacked consistency and consultation with the committee.
Comparing it with the 2022 draft Bill, the current version empowers the Central government, through the Data Protection Board, to block platforms with an opportunity for the “data fiduciary” to be heard. The Bill protects the Central government and the Data Protection Board from legal proceedings done in good faith. It also limits the jurisdiction of civil courts in matters related to the Board.
The maximum penalty for a data breach by a data fiduciary has been reduced to ₹250 crore from the earlier proposed ₹500 crore.