HYDERABAD: AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi said on Monday that he will file a private bill in the Lok Sabha requesting a ban on the usage of facial recognition and remote biometric surveillance technology.
The Hyderabad MP pointed out that according to the Supreme Court, privacy is a fundamental right and said, "Such technology can record and use your gait to identify you. Face recognition technology is inaccurate in identifying dark people, women, persons with disabilities & young people. The accuracy of these technologies depends on the database," he said in a series of tweets.
He also claimed that the databases which are used to identify citizens are riddled with bias against SCs, STs and Muslims. "These databases are themselves riddled with bias. For example, a database of arrested people will obviously have an over-representation of SCs, STs & Muslims," Owaisi added.
Calling for a data protection law, Owaisi further said, "Such tech also obstructs us from freely exercising other rights for fear of surveillance. A strong & stringent Data Protection Law is needed to protect our privacy & national security. Despite this urgency, the Union govt has drafted a weak Bill that is unlikely to do much."
Private bills are introduced by MPs in both houses of Parliament, as opposed to government bills introduced by ministers.