India’s Supreme Court has agreed to examine legal challenges to the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023 and its accompanying rules, issuing a notice to the federal government in response to petitions that question key provisions of the law.
A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant and including Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M. Pancholi said it will hear arguments about whether parts of the DPDP Act and the Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025 are constitutional. The court refused to halt the law while the case proceeds, saying it would not stop a regime that Parliament has enacted without hearing the full challenge first.
The petitions were filed by digital news platform The Reporters’ Collective, journalist Nitin Sethi, and others, including a Right to Information (RTI) activist. They argue that some provisions grant “sweeping powers” to the government over personal data and undermine the Right to Information Act, potentially weakening transparency in governance.
The challengers say the law creates broad exemptions that could block the disclosure of information under India’s RTI laws by labelling it as “personal data,” effectively reducing accountability in public office. They have asked the court to review how the DPDP framework interacts with existing transparency protections.
Advocates for the petitioners told the court that the Act lacks precision and balance, and that it could allow government authorities unfettered access to personal information held by private companies and public bodies alike.
Government lawyers have been asked to respond to the legal points raised. The court has not set a final hearing date but agreed that the issues are complex, involving a balancing of privacy rights with public interest in open government.
The DPDP Act was passed in 2023 and its rules were notified in late 2025 to bring the law fully into force. Supporters say the law is meant to update India’s framework for protecting personal data in the digital age. Critics have long warned that some clauses, especially those affecting transparency, could have unintended effects on free access to information and civil liberties.
The Supreme Court’s decision to hear the challenge highlights ongoing debate in India over how to regulate data while safeguarding fundamental rights under the constitution.