Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday raised concerns over India’s data sovereignty, alleging a lack of transparency from the government on how citizens’ data will be protected amid ongoing digital trade negotiations with the United States.
Gandhi said India should be at the forefront of the global technology race but is instead being “kept in the dark” on critical issues related to data protection and use.
He said India’s data belongs to its people and can serve as a key asset in building AI capabilities, boosting businesses and generating employment.
In a series of questions to the government, Gandhi sought clarity on what “barrier reduction” means in India-US trade discussions on data governance. He asked whether sensitive data, such as health records, financial information and government databases, would remain stored within India and whether the country would retain the authority to enforce data localization for foreign companies.
“Every question about our data sovereignty, health data, AI and local data storage gets the same treatment: ‘framework’, ‘balance’, ‘autonomy’ – big words, zero specifics,” the former congressional president said.
The government refuses to tell the country what it is negotiating away, he claimed.
“We should be leading the global technology race, but instead we are kept in the dark about how India’s data will be protected,” Gandhi said. People deserve transparency and accountability regarding the country’s data, he asserted.
“We deserve to own and use our data to build a better future,” Gandhi said.
Rahul Gandhi had earlier raised similar questions in the Lok Sabha on April 1, asking how India plans to reconcile its commitments under the proposed India-US trade framework with existing data localization rules and regulatory safeguards.
He also sought details on whether such agreements could limit India’s ability to regulate artificial intelligence, limit foreign access to sensitive infrastructure or mandate local storage of critical data.
