LS approves data bill amid Oppn protests

The Lok Sabha passed the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2023 on Monday, after a debate spread over 50 minutes amid heavy sloganeering by Opposition members, most of whom also opposed the law.

Union minister for electronics and technology Ashwini Vaishnaw opened the debate by praising his government's Digital India initiatives before adding that the data protection law complements this process and had been drawn up after discussions at various forums. "Today, there are roughly 900 million Indians who have been connected to the internet. It is in these circumstances, in this digital world, that this bill sets out to give rights to citizens and protect their privacy," he said, adding that discussions were held with at least 48 organisations and 39 ministries and that there were 24,000 consultations. The minister then lashed out at the Opposition. "It would have been ideal if the Opposition discussed this proposed law well. But none of the Opposition members care about the rights of citizens, which is why they are only sloganeering".