India passes data protection legislation in Parliament. Critics fear privacy violation

NEW DELHI (AP) — Indian lawmakers have approved a data protection legislation that “seeks to better regulate big tech firms and penalize companies for data breaches” as several groups expressed concern over citizens’ privacy rights. The Digital Personal Data Protection bill that was passed Wednesday will limit cross-border transfers of data and provide a framework for setting up a data protection authority to ensure compliance from tech companies, according to officials. Critics say the legislation would allow the government and its agencies to access user data from companies and personal data of individuals without their consent as well as collect private data in a country where digital freedoms have been shrinking since Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office in 2014.