The Centre on Tuesday told the Supreme Court that a new data protection Bill is ready and will be introduced in the forthcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament. Attorney General R Venkataramani told a Constitution Bench headed by Justice KM Joseph the Bill will address all the concerns raised in the present petitions related to privacy concerns of social media users.

The Bench, also comprising Justices Ajay Rastogi, Aniruddha Bose, Hrishikesh Roy, and CT Ravikumar took note of the submission and said that the matter be placed before Chief Justice DY Chandrachud so that a new Bench can be constituted as Justice Joseph is set to retire on June 16. The matter has been posted for hearing in the first week of August 2023.

Senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for the petitioners, submitted the court should not link the court hearings to the legislative process as the court was told on three previous occasions that the bill on data protection is likely to be passed. The legislative process is complex and the may be referred to some committees, he said.

Countering Divan’s argument, Venkataramani said consultation is a continuous process and the bill has gone through a “very qualified consultation process.” “Don’t say we are taking time. We want a good law to come,” said the AG.

The apex court said in its order, “We take note of the submission of the Attorney General that a bill which addresses all the concerns will be tabled in the Monsoon session of the Parliament commencing July 2023. Considering the circumstances, we request the Registry to place the matter before the Chief Justice so that a bench can be constituted.”