Digital Personal Data Protection Bill 2023 gets Parliament nod | India News – Times of India
Union IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the bill lays down obligations on private and government entities around collection and processing of citizen’s data. Minister of state for electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar said it is an important step to protect citizens’ rights and support innovation economy and governance.
The Lok Sabha had passed the Bill on Monday.
The Bill provides for processing of digital personal data in a manner that recognizes both the right of indivual to protect their personal data and the need to process such personal data for lawful purposes and for matters of commerce.
It has provisions to curb the misuse of individuals’ data by online platforms. It comes six years after the Supreme Court declaring “Right to Privacy” as a fundamental right. It seeks to protect the privacy of Indian citizens while proposing a penalty of up to Rs 250 crore on entities for misusing or failing to protect the digital data of individuals.
Ashwini Vaishnaw lamented the absence of opposition in the House for discussion on the Bill. “It would have been good had the opposition discussed the bill today (in the House). But no opposition leader or member is concerned over the rights of the citizens,” he said.
Underscoring the salient features of the Bill, the minister said its language is very simple so that even a common person can understand it.
Referring to certain principles on which the Bill is based, Vaishnaw said that according to the principle of legality, data of a person has to be taken based on prevailing laws and cannot be used for purpose beyond which it has been collected.
The minister said an independent Data Protection Board (DPB) will be created which is “digital by design” and will provide similar access to justice to people across the country in the same way as privileged people in cities like Delhi and Mumbai.
“The board will comprise experts who understand the field of data and the board is independent by law. Above this board, appeal can be made before telecom tribunal TDSAT and further before the Supreme Court,” Vaishnaw said.
