Consultation campaign organised by the National Campaign for People’s Right to Information, in association with Press Cub, Hyderabad on Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023 on Saturday.
| Photo Credit: By Arrangement
The Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023 will rob journalists of their basic right to report and publish if the Act is opertionalised, said Anjali Bharadwaj, Amruth Johri and Rakesh Dubbudu of the National Campaign for People’s Right to Information.
Addressing a consultation campaign organized in association with Press Cub Hyderabad here on Saturday, they explained the dangers that lie ahead for journalistic community in free expression of the issues concerning the society.
As per the Act, the journalists cannot collect personal information and even if they collect they cannot disseminate the same in any form without the consent of the people whose personal information is collected. The new Act doesn’t exempt journalists though the earlier drafts of the Act exempted the journalists from this purview.
They said any violation of the Act would lead to fines up to ₹500 crore. Moreover, only the government has the right to exempt any organization. There is a fear that media organisations and independent journalists questioning government acts can be terrorized while media houses supporting government narratives can be exempted from the violations.
They also explained that the Editors Guild wrote to the Central government expressing their reservations over certain sections of the Act but the government has not responded so far. The Opposition Parties also sent a letter to the Ministry with 130 MPs signing the letter on this ‘draconian law’ but the government is silent.
The danger is not only for journalists but also people involved in the Right to Information Act as their activities will be hampered due to the stringent sections preventing seeking of personal information of the officers concerned.
Press Club Hyderabad General Secretary R. Ravikanth Reddy, Vice President C. Vanaja, EC members V. Bapu Rao, Padmavathi and Tigulla Srinivas and senior journalists were present.
Published – April 26, 2025 09:06 pm is
