NEW DELHI: Amid concerns raised by several opposition MPs that basic civil liberties, human rights and possible dangers to vulnerable groups in the absence of a data protection law, the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday passed the Criminal Procedure (Identification) Bill, 2022, by voice vote.
During a three-hour debate, Union Home Minister Amit Shah clarified that the objective of the Bill is to improve the efficacy of crime detection and assured the House that no one’s privacy and human rights will be infringed upon, and that strict guidelines will be enforced to ensure access control over the data.
The Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha earlier this week. Serious concerns have been raised about the provisions of safety and privacy of bioprints to be collected from convicts, with former top cops expressing concern that police can misuse it and plant evidence.
The home minister said the Bill is part of a larger environment to use modern technology to assist in investigations and there is no political intention behind it. Speaking on the Bill, former home minister and Congress leader P Chidambaram called it “unscientific” and “illegal” and that the disadvantaged population will be the worst sufferers. He also mentioned about the six per cent failure rate of fingerprint recognition under UIDAI.
Calling it “draconian”, TMC MP Sukhendu Sekhar Roy claimed the Bill has wide-ranging implications for rights to privacy, equality and freedom and the provision of a long retention period in the Bill violates principles of natural justice as well as Article 23 of the Constitution. DMK MP Tiruchy Siva termed it “repressive, oligarchic” and one that erodes fundamental rights of citizens and has strong implications for basic civil liberties and human rights.