As the digital economy expands, the Global South faces challenges such as platform dominance, data inequality, and a persistent digital divide, all of which echo colonial-era patterns of exploitation. These challenges, while largely driven by corporate actors, are further complicated by state actions, including surveillance, censorship, and internet shutdowns, which exacerbate control over citizens in the digital realm. Scholars have analysed these dynamics through the concept of ‘digital colonialism’, which highlights how the digital ecosystem mirrors colonial practices of extraction, exploitation and dispossession. While much of the discourse in the Global South centers around the role of dominant tech firms, the state also plays a critical role in perpetuating these colonial dynamics, using digital tools to reinforce its power and control. This paper critically examines India’s digital governance framework, presenting it as a postcolonial digital developmental state. It evaluates India’s strategies for asserting digital sovereignty, including the development of digital public infrastructure, regulating dominant platforms, and experimenting with data governance policies that prioritise community rights and non-personal data sharing. These initiatives aim to counter corporate digital colonialism and bridge the digital divide. Nevertheless, tensions remain, as state-driven practices continue to reproduce colonial dynamics of control. By analysing the strengths and limitations of India’s digital governance model in addressing digital colonialism from both corporate and state actors, the paper seeks to provide valuable insights for other Global South nations aiming to create a more equitable, rights-based digital ecosystem.