This law will not violate any individual's privacy

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW KIREN RIJIJU,Union law minister

- NAMRATA BIJI AHUJA

How will you ensure that the Criminal Procedure (Identification) Act is not misused?

The Act is the need of the hour for the country. It is a progressive law and is timely as it is necessary to provide law enforcement agencies with tools to act against criminals appropriately and investigate crimes swiftly in sync with modern times. The Union home minister (Amit Shah) has addressed this issue in Parliament. He has said that while framing the rules, the provisions in the Act and its objectives would be properly incorporated.

How does the new law not clash with the data privacy rules and the right to privacy of citizens?

This law is not going to violate the privacy of any individual because the data collected will be completely secure. We must understand that the government is following international best practices followed by other countries in the area of evidentiary proof for solving crimes. As technological advancements have been made, the crime trends have also undergone technological and scientific changes, and the laws have to keep pace with them.

So, the current laws were inadequate?

The Identification of Prisoners Act was formed in 1920. The Act provided for the collection of only fingerprints and footprints, and is very narrow in its scope to collect the biometric and physical information of the accused/convicts. After the law commission examined the issue, it proposed changes. Discussions took place multiple times on the various provisions in the law to enforce the collection of such information. The law has been passed after due diligence.

What about political detainees?