Formulating law:Amit Shah speaking in the Rajya Sabha during the Budget Session of Parliament on Wednesday.PTI-

The Rajya Sabha on Wednesday passed the Criminal Procedure (Identification) Bill, 2022, which seeks to authorise the collection, storage and analysis of biometric samples of convicts and others involved in criminal matters.

The Lok Sabha passed the Bill on Monday.

Replying to the discussion on the Bill, Home Minister Amit Shah said the data collected would be protected and shared through a secure mechanism so that people’s privacy was not risked.

He explained that the Bill had the objectives of increasing the rate of conviction and forensic capacity and collecting scientific evidence, eliminating third degree methods against those accused of crimes.

Stating that politics should be kept out while considering security concerns of the citizens of the country, Mr. Shah said, “Don’t we want to move on? Won’t we think of the country amidst the gulli-danda of politics? Politics should not be done on the question of public safety, punishment to the guilty.’’

‘We will ensure that the political agitators do not have to give their physical and biological samples. But if leaders are arrested in a criminal case, they will have to give their samples,’’ the Home Minister added.

Congress leader P. Chidambaram said that Bill was unconstitutional and it violated the liberty, privacy and dignity of people. “The Bill wasn’t referred to a select committee,” he said adding that the government had not taken into account the historic verdicts of the Supreme Court in Selvi and Puttaswamy cases.

“In the Selvi case, the court said that polygraphy, narcoanalysis and brain electrical activation profile (BEAP) violate an individual’s rights,” Mr. Chidambaram said.

CPI MP Binoy Viswam said the Bill was draconian, and added that the Centre wanted to threaten everybody. “You want to take away all the human rights. This government has no regard for freedom,” he said.

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