Skip to main content
Back to content

Namrata Maheshwari

Senior Policy Counsel and Encryption Policy Lead

Namrata Maheshwari serves as Senior Policy Counsel and Encryption Policy Lead at Access Now. She leads Access Now’s policy and advocacy work across South Asia. She also leads the organization’s work on encryption policy globally. Previously, she worked with the Center for Democracy & Technology as a Consultant, primarily on the Freedom, Security, and Technology Project. Namrata is an India-qualified lawyer, enrolled with the bar council. She completed her LL.M. from Columbia Law School as a Stone Scholar, with a focus on technology policy and digital governance. Prior to that, she received her law degree from Jindal Global Law School with a scholarship for outstanding women. In the past, she has worked at a premiere corporate law firm in India, and as a litigator before Indian courts

TikTok

Censorship at the door: India must say no to government fact-checking 

1 Feb 2024

Indian government must refrain from implementing the fact-checking amendment to the IT Rules, 2021, until the court reaches a definitive decision.

Press Release
Censorship at the door: India must say no to government fact-checking 
1 Feb 2024
Censorship at the door: India must say no to government fact-checking 
brightly coloured image of fists and signs

No liberty, no safety: Sri Lanka must withdraw the Online Safety Bill

19 Jan 2024

Access Now, Hashtag Generation, and more than 50 organisations, are demanding the Government of Sri Lanka to withdraw the Online Safety Bill. 

Press Release
No liberty, no safety: Sri Lanka must withdraw the Online Safety Bill
19 Jan 2024
No liberty, no safety: Sri Lanka must withdraw the Online Safety Bill
brightly coloured image of fists and signs

Open letter to Sri Lankan government: Withdraw Online Safety Bill to protect people’s rights and future

19 Jan 2024

More than fifty Sri Lankan and international organisations are calling on the Sri Lankan government to withdraw the Onine Safety Bill.

Press Release
Open letter to Sri Lankan government: Withdraw Online Safety Bill to protect people’s rights and future
19 Jan 2024
Open letter to Sri Lankan government: Withdraw Online Safety Bill to protect people’s rights and future
European Media Freedom Act

Submission on India’s draft Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, 2023

15 Jan 2024

Access Now raises concerns about peopleʼs fundamental rights in its submission on India’s Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, 2023.

Publication
Submission on India’s draft Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, 2023
15 Jan 2024
Submission on India’s draft Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, 2023
#KeepItOn during elections

#KeepItOn in Bangladesh: ensure open, free internet before, during, and after elections 

4 Jan 2024

Authorities in Bangladesh must guarantee unfettered access to the internet and all other digital communication channels through all phases of the election cycle. 

Press Release
#KeepItOn in Bangladesh: ensure open, free internet before, during, and after elections 
4 Jan 2024
#KeepItOn in Bangladesh: ensure open, free internet before, during, and after elections 
Global encryption day 2023

Submission to eSafety Commissioner, Australia on the draft Online Safety Industry Standards

22 Dec 2023

Access Now recommends eSafety Office against mandating online communication services, as well as file storage and cloud services, to proactively detect content on their platforms.

Publication
Submission to eSafety Commissioner, Australia on the draft Online Safety Industry Standards
22 Dec 2023
Submission to eSafety Commissioner, Australia on the draft Online Safety Industry Standards

Indian government must withdraw the Telecommunications Bill, 2023, to protect fundamental rights

21 Dec 2023

International group of organisations and experts urge DoT, India to withdraw the Telecommunications Bill, 2023, and protect fundamental rights

Press Release
Indian government must withdraw the Telecommunications Bill, 2023, to protect fundamental rights
21 Dec 2023
Indian government must withdraw the Telecommunications Bill, 2023, to protect fundamental rights
Sweden

These safety standards lack safeguards: Australia must protect encryption

20 Dec 2023

Through an open letter, over 600 signatories are urging the eSafety Commissioner to introduce safeguards fo encrypted services in the Online Safety Codes.

Press Release
These safety standards lack safeguards: Australia must protect encryption
20 Dec 2023
These safety standards lack safeguards: Australia must protect encryption

India’s rushed telco bill must be amended to protect human rights 

18 Dec 2023

India’s Telecommunications Bill, 2023 threatens open, secure, and unhindered internet access.

Press Release
India’s rushed telco bill must be amended to protect human rights 
18 Dec 2023
India’s rushed telco bill must be amended to protect human rights 
Access Now theme

Slipping down the authoritarian hole: Nepal must lift the TikTok ban

16 Nov 2023

Nepal must reverse its ban on TikTok and publish recent directives for social media platforms.

Press Release
Slipping down the authoritarian hole: Nepal must lift the TikTok ban
16 Nov 2023
Slipping down the authoritarian hole: Nepal must lift the TikTok ban