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Personal Data Protection Bill 2019 Withdrawn After 81 Amendments

Govt withdraws personal data bill
The Centre told the members of the Joint Parliamentary Committee that a new Bill that fits into the comprehensive legal framework is being worked on.

Mumbai:  The Centre on August 3 withdrew the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019, and will be introducing a new Bill.

The Personal Data Protection Act, which aimed to regulate how an individualโ€™s data can be used by businesses and the government, was repealed after a joint parliamentary committee proposed 81 amendments.  According to government sources, a report of the Joint Parliamentary Committee, work is underway on a comprehensive legal framework that paves the way for a new bill.

The bill was sent to the jury in 2019 after facing vehement protests from the opposition Congress and the TMC, among others, which alleged that the data privacy law violated the fundamental rights of citizens.
Opposition parties have said the law gives the government broad powers to access peopleโ€™s personal data in unclear circumstances, citing national security and other reasons.

The bill defined personal data as information that could help in the identification of an individual and has characteristics, traits and other features of a personโ€™s identity.

Opposition parties said the law would make it easier for the government to spy on citizens, while the government said penalties for unauthorized use of the data were sufficient to prevent such cases.

The law also reportedly required major social media platforms to offer an identity verification option, a potentially previous effort to stem the spread of โ€œfake newsโ€.

The requirement would likely raise a number of technical and political issues for businesses of social media platforms such as Facebook and its WhatsApp and Instagram, Twitter units, all of which have millions of users in India.

The Personal Data Protection Act has been eagerly awaited by major technology companies and industry stakeholders as it could change the way all major internet companies process, store and transfer Indian consumer data.

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Politics

17 Opposition Parties Issue Joint Statement Protesting Against Supreme Court Verdict On Money Laundering Law

Shashank
Supreme Court

Some parties of the opposition have already said โ€” alleging political vendetta by misuse of the law โ€” that theyโ€™ll again go to the Supreme Court to seek a review. They also cite that there have been very few convictions under the law. 

17 Opposition parties, including Congress, Trinamool, DMK, CPI(M), Samajwadi Party, and AAP issued a joint statement protesting against the Supreme Courtโ€™s verdict on the money laundering law, upholding amendments made in 2019 to the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), giving more powers to agencies such as the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

โ€œWe hope that the dangerous verdict will be short-lived and constitutional provisions will prevail soon,โ€ said the statement.โ€

The apex court on July 27 upheld the validity of a wide range of powers granted to the ED under the amended law that had been challenged by nearly 250 petitions. The court rejected key arguments that the powers to arrest and an ambiguous definition of โ€œproceeds of crimeโ€ could be misused.

Some parties of the opposition have already said โ€” alleging political vendetta by misuse of the law โ€” that theyโ€™ll again go to the Supreme Court to seek a review. They also cite that there have been very few convictions under the law.

According to data shared by the Finance Ministry in the Rajya Sabha, in the eight years of the Narendra Modi government so far, raids by the ED are up 26 times as compared to the previous government, but the conviction rate is extremely low. In 3,010 money laundering-related searches, only 23 accused have been convicted, In 112 of these searches, there have been no money-laundering convictions.

The centre was accused of Vendetta politics when the Congressโ€™s Gandhis were questioned by the ED in connection to a money laundering act related to the national herald newspaper.

Further, the Opposition has questioned how these amendments were pushed through in Parliament โ€” and that question is already before the Supreme Court. The statement pointed out that these were passed under the Finance Act introduced as a โ€œMoney Billโ€.

The Money Bill route meant the new provisions only needed a nod from the Lok Sabha, before being sent to the President for final approval. It could not be rejected by the Rajya Sabha, the Upper House, where the government did not have the numbers for a sure-shot approval.

โ€œIf tomorrow the top Court holds that the challenged amendments through Finance Act are bad in law,โ€ said the Opposition statement, โ€œthen the entire exercise would become futile and loss of judicial time.โ€

The Oppositionโ€™s larger argument is that a Money Bill essentially deals with the appropriation of money from the Consolidated Fund and taxation, and cannot be used to make laws on other matters.

โ€œWe hold, and will always hold, our Supreme Court in the highest respect. Yet, we are compelled to point out that the judgment should have awaited the verdict of a larger Bench for examining the constitutionality of the Finance Act route to carry out amendments,โ€ the statement added.

โ€œThese far-reaching amendments strengthened the hands of a government, indulging in the political vendetta of the worst kind,โ€ the statement further said. โ€œWe are also very disappointed that the highest judicial authorityโ€ฆ has virtually reproduced arguments given by the executive in support of draconian amendments.โ€

โ€œMoney laundering not only affects the social and economic fabric of the nation but also tends to promote other heinous offenses such as terrorism, offenses related to (narcotics),โ€ the court said while announcing the judgment.

The court said the supply of ECIR (Enforcement Case Information Report) in every case is not mandatory as it is an internal document. it rejected the petitionersโ€™ challenge that it is similar to an FIR and the accused is entitled to a copy. The court also said itโ€™s enough if the ED, at the time of arrest, tells the accused of the reasons for the action.

The petitioners had also challenged putting the burden of proof on the accused, saying that it violates fundamental rights. But the court disagreed. The central government had said that the burden of proof on the accused is justified as money-laundering offenses are serious and there is a societal need to curb them.

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