Chapter V · Data Protection Board of India
Section 19: Composition and qualifications of the Board
Section 19 sets who runs the Board: a Chairperson and Members appointed by the Central Government, chosen for expertise in data governance, technology, law and related fields, with at least one legal expert.
- Chapter
- Chapter V · Data Protection Board of India
- Status
- In force
- In force since
- 13 November 2025
- Applies to
- Data Protection Board
- Official citation
- DPDP Act, 2023, s.19
- Reading time
- 3 min
- Updated
- August 2026
At a glance
Section 19 governs who sits on the Data Protection Board. It consists of a Chairperson and as many Members as the Central Government notifies [19(1)], appointed by the Central Government in the prescribed manner [19(2)]. Members must be persons of ability, integrity and standing with special knowledge or practical experience in fields such as data governance, social or consumer-protection law, dispute resolution, information and communication technology, the digital economy, law or techno-regulation, and at least one must be an expert in law [19(3)]. This section is in force since 13 November 2025.
Section 19: key takeaways
- The Board is a Chairperson plus Members, with the number set by Central Government notification [19(1)].
- Members are appointed by the Central Government in the prescribed manner [19(2)].
- Members need ability, integrity and expertise in data governance, technology, the digital economy, law or related fields [19(3)].
- At least one Member must be an expert in law [19(3)].
Who Section 19 applies to
Read this if you want to know who decides matters under the Act: the Board that will hear complaints against your company is a small, expert body appointed by the Central Government.
Section 19 in plain language
Section 19 answers "who decides?". The Board is a Chairperson and a government-set number of Members, all appointed by the Central Government.
They are meant to be experts, not generalists: the Act lists data governance, consumer-protection law, dispute resolution, ICT, the digital economy, law and techno-regulation, and requires at least one legal expert.
Section 19 of the DPDP Act: full text
Section 19: Composition and qualifications of the Board
19(1) The Board consists of a Chairperson and such number of other Members as the Central Government notifies.
19(2) The Chairperson and Members are appointed by the Central Government in the prescribed manner.
19(3) They must be persons of ability, integrity and standing with special knowledge or practical experience in data governance, social or consumer-protection law, dispute resolution, information and communication technology, the digital economy, law, regulation or techno-regulation, or another useful field, and at least one must be an expert in law.
Wording summarised from the enacted Act. Always confirm against the official Gazette text for authoritative language.
What Section 19 means for your business
- The people deciding complaints against you are meant to be domain experts, so submissions to the Board can assume technical and legal literacy.
- Composition is set by government notification, so the Board's size and makeup can change over time.
Frequently asked questions about Section 19
Who sits on the Data Protection Board?
How many Members does the Board have?
What qualifications must Members have?
Who appoints the Board?
Sources
- Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY)
- DPDP Rules, 2025Notified 13–14 November 2025
This is an educational explanation, not legal advice. dpdpactindia.in is an independent resource and is not affiliated with the Government of India.