India’s Supreme Court on Wednesday set new guidelines for the use of Aadhaar, the unique identification project, in the country.
The top court ruled that the order to link all mobile phone connections to Aadhaar was unconstitutional. The court also held that there was no need to link bank accounts with the unique identification number.
The India government has earlier rejected criticism of Aadhaar, the 12-digit Unique Identification Number that’s now compulsory for linking of bank accounts, mobile phone numbers, and filing income tax returns, saying it ensures misuses of social welfare benefits and counters black money and money laundering.
Aadhaar data is safe and cannot be breached, the government and Aadhaar Aadhaar UIDAI have said.
The Supreme Court in March 2018 expressed concern over the potential misuse of Aadhaar authentication data, commenting after a four-hour PowerPoint presentation by the UIDAI chairman.
The court in April 2108 questioned the Department of Telecommunications (DOT) for using an ostensible court directive as an excuse to order the linking of mobile phone numbers to Aadhaar unique identity numbers.
Aadhaar act could be passed as money bill, says SC today. Aadhaar will be needed for filing income tax returns. Aadhaar will not be needed for securing school admissions for children.
Process of enrolling for Aadhaar eliminates duplication.
Justice Chandrachud favours deletion of consumers’ Aadhaar data by mobile service providers. Decision to link Aadhaar with SIM cards neither valid nor constitutional, Justice Chandrachud said.
Aadhaar Act is silent on the liability of UIDAI and its personnel in case of any violation, says Justice Chandrachud.
The source code belongs to a foreign corporation. UIDAI is merely a licensee, says Justice Chandrachud. This is contrary to the basic requirements that an individual has a right to control oneself, he says.
Aadhaar is not mandatory for UGC, NEET & CBSE examinations. Biometric data shall not be shared with any agency without the permission of the court.
Aadhaar is not needed for banking, but a must for PAN, says Supreme Court. Aadhaar is needed for filing income tax returns.