The Central government on Wednesday withdrew the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2021 from the Lok Sabha, after a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) proposed 81 amendments in the same.
Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw moved a motion in the Lower House of Parliament to withdraw the Bill, which was passed in a voice vote.
Intending to provide for a law for the protection of personal data, the Bill was introduced on December 11, 2019, the Bill was referred to the Joint Committee of the Houses for examination, which presented its report to the Lok Sabha on December 16, 2021.
Vaishnaw said the JPC had proposed 81 amendments and 12 recommendations in the Bill. A new Bill, which fits into the comprehensive legal framework on digital ecosystem, will be brought in the Lok Sabha later, he added.
The Bill governs the processing of personal data by: (i) government, (ii) companies incorporated in India, and (iii) foreign companies dealing with personal data of individuals in India.
Personal data is the data, which pertains to characteristics, traits or attributes of identity, which can be used to identify an individual. The Bill categorises certain personal data as sensitive personal data.
This includes financial data, bio-metric data, caste, religious or political beliefs, or any other category of data specified by the government, in consultation with the Authority.
After its withdrawal, Congress leader Manish Tewari tweeted: “Most unfortunate, Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019, as amended by Joint Committee of Parliament is being withdrawn by Govt. For full two years … MPs across parties worked to better it. Big Tech never wanted this Law. Big Tech won. India lost.”
The Bill had been sent to the parliamentary committee, after the Centre faced strong protest from the opposition parties, including the Congress and the Trinamool Congress. The parties said the law violated the fundamental rights of citizens.
They alleged that the data privacy law gave sweeping powers to the government to access personal data of individuals for reasons such as national security.
However, top technology companies and industry stakeholders were keenly waiting for the Bill, as it could alter the way all major internet companies process, store and transfer the data of Indian consumers.