LS likely to consider bill aiming to curb piracy on Thursday

NEW DELHI: The Lok Sabha is expected to take up an external affairs ministry bill that seeks to create special provisions to curb piracy in the high seas when it meets on Thursday morning. According to the agenda listed for tomorrow, External Affairs minister S Jaishankar will move the bill that includes provisions for repression of piracy.

On Wednesday, the Lok Sabha was adjourned after the government withdrew the Personal Data Protection Bill and has decided to come up with new legislation in view of a large number of amendments suggested by a Joint Committee of Parliament towards creating a comprehensive legal framework on the digital ecosystem. Union Electronics and Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw moved the motion for withdrawal of the bill in Lok Sabha.

"The Data Protection Bill 2021 as reported by the Joint Committee may be withdrawn," he said. The House adopted the motion. The minister later said that Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019 was deliberated in great detail by the Joint Committee of Parliament and 81 amendments were proposed and 12 recommendations were made towards a comprehensive legal framework for the digital ecosystem. The bill was sent to a Joint Committee of Parliament which gave its report on December 16, 2021.

Earlier in the day, the Energy Conservation (Amendment) Bill, 2022, was introduced in the Lower House. Leader of the Opposition and senior Congress leader M Mallikarjun Kharge and his colleague Deepender Singh Hooda, Shiv Sena's Priyanka Chaturvedi, and AAP's Sanjay Singh and Raghav Chadha gave notices under rule 267 but these were not admitted.

"You know my position. These are all notices not worth to be taken up under 267," Naidu said.Rule 267 provides for setting aside the business of the day to take up discussion on the issue being raised in such notice. August 3 marks 13-days of the Monsoon Session of the parliament, proceedings in the parliament commenced at 11 am. During these 13 days, not many discussion sessions took place due to continuous agitation showcased by the opposition.