DPDP Act & Rules Collectively Cripple RTI, Endanger Journalism, Says DIGIPUB
New Delhi: DIGIPUB News India Foundation, a collective of digital news portals and independent journalists, has expressed its deep concern over the Digital Personal Data Protection Rules (DPDP), 2025, notified by the government on November 13, making the Act concerned enforceable with immediate effect.
In a press statement, DIGIPUB, whose members include News Minute, The Wire, AltNews, Newsclick, Newslaundry, The Quint, Boomlive, Article 14, HW News, Scroll, Cobrapost among others, said the concerned Act and the Rules “collectively cripple the Right to Information Act”, and also “endanger journalism”.
DIGIPUB urged the government and the department concerned to initiate a “transparent, formal and time-bound” consultation in the issues submitted by it, as also amend provisions that undermine media freedom, Right to Information and integrity of the digital space.
“By excluding journalists from any statutory exemption and granting the State broad access and enforcement powers, the open the door to indirect censorship, a chilling effect on free expression, and disproportionate surveillance of legitimate newsgathering activities”, read the statement.
It added that the Rules and the Act also “endanger source confidentiality, hinder public interest investigations, obstruct anti-corruption disclosures, and weaken the information framework essential for democratic accountability”, and called for restoration of “clear, statutory exemption for journalistic and public interest processing”.
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