Protection of privacy, as articulated by a nine-judge bench of the Supreme Court in the two Puttaswamy v. Union of India judgments (2017 and 2019), is indispensable to a digital India.

To ensure that the informational privacy of all Indians is protected, we commit to building a rights-affirming digital environment with adequate channels for grievance redress.

We will amend the data protection legislation such that it meets the standards of privacy and principles of proportionality set out by the Supreme Court in the Puttaswamy judgments.

We will implement robust data processing, storage and sharing mechanisms in line with internationally accepted principles.

At the same time, we will be cognizant of the right to information and the RTI Act, which is a significant pillar of democratic governance.

In order to preserve privacy, dignity, and freedom of movement of Indian citizens, there is a critical need for establishing proper safeguards and oversight over digital surveillance by the Executive.

We will work to ensure that legal safeguards and processes with adequate checks and balances are created for surveillance by police and intelligence agencies, to prevent misuse and targeted or mass surveillance of individuals.

We will introduce long overdue reform in surveillance practices and powers of the Executive, with sufficient legislative and judicial oversight on any interception of digital devices, including computer access and phone tapping.

We will carefully evaluate and reconsider the role of intrusive, emerging technological use-cases such as artificial intelligence and facial recognition in surveillance, and conduct privacy impact assessments before deploying such tools.

We will acknowledge the positive role played by encryption technologies in securing the right to privacy for people. We will strive to protect and encourage the adoption of end-to-end encryption.

We will strive to eliminate the use of spyware as a tool for surveillance. 

India is a valuable market for companies globally, with Indians forming a bulk of their user base. In exchange for establishing a presence on and using the services of these platforms, users are unknowingly relinquishing effective control over how they interact with technology.

Legislative, regulatory, and policy measures are needed to effectively ensure an equitable balance of company interests and individual rights, in a way that the former respects the fundamental right to free speech and privacy.

Technology companies as well as the government must strive to serve the public's best interests instead of protecting company profits. To that end, we will ensure that companies adopt measures for greater transparency and accountability through tools such as a Human Rights Impact Assessment. 

The legitimate use of generative AI for reasons such as translation or authorised dubbing of audio-video content to reach a broader audience can achieve positive outcomes. However, the unauthorised use of such technology for nefarious use to create manipulated media can have devastating consequences, including financial fraud, defamation, impersonation, etc.

In light of the existing limitations of detection tools and redressal capabilities of platforms and companies, we promise to not create and/or use manipulated media for nefarious reasons as government actors and otherwise. We will also strive to create solutions at the legal, policy, and societal level for such emerging technologies in a way that balances the right to online free legitimate and legal speech and the right to receive information.

In addition to working towards building technical capacity within the government and its allied organisations to tackle these emerging threats, we will also undertake media literacy efforts, both in the digital and physical space, to raise awareness about the existence of and threats posed by these technologies.