Data Protection Bill Likely To Get Clean Chit From IT Committee, Members Divided On The Decision

The Standing Parliamentary Committee on Communications and IT may give a clean chit to the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Bill.

The committee may table a 40-page report in the Parliament endorsing the Bill despite protests from opposition, Moneycontrol reported.

A member of the committee, who has different views compared to the report prepared, has also drafted a dissent note criticising the extensive powers the Bill gives to the government and its agencies.

On the other hand, the report suggests that the Bill should be enacted into a law “without any undue delay,”. The implementation of the Bill will be a “turning point in the domain of data processing”, as per content of the Bill, as well as it will ensure the “safeguarding of personal information and fostering trust” in the digital ecosystem.

In the dissent note, the member has raised concerns over “blanket exemptions” from the provisions of the Bill for selected government entities which could lead to a violation of the Right to Privacy.

In addition, it has criticised the government’s role in the appointment of the members of the Data Protection Authority (DPA), adding that the DPA would become a “puppet of the Centre”.

While the government has proposed to create the redressal forum DPA in the Bill, the proposal caused a stir in the industry. With the government having complete control over the board, industry experts feared the misuse of power.

One of the biggest concerns raised by experts was that the chief executive of the board will be appointed by the Union government.

The Union Cabinet cleared the Bill earlier in July. The Bill, which was released in November 2022, reportedly, has seen some minor changes after consultations with stakeholders.

The government withdrew the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2021 last year after a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) proposed 81 amendments to it.

Following this, the government came out with the DPDP Bill. It has proposed the concept of data fiduciary and mandated new changes, including the right of a user to give, manage, and withdraw consent for sharing information.

The new data privacy law will also significantly increase the accountability of startup businesses when managing sensitive data. In case of non-compliance with the provisions of the Bill, a penalty of up to INR 500 Cr may be imposed.