In 2009, I became extremely concerned with the concept of Unique Identity for various reasons. Connected with many like minded highly educated people who were all concerned.
On 18th May 2010, I started this Blog to capture anything and everything I came across on the topic. This blog with its million hits is a testament to my concerns about loss of privacy and fear of the ID being misused and possible Criminal activities it could lead to.
In 2017 the Supreme Court of India gave its verdict after one of the longest hearings on any issue. I did my bit and appealed to the Supreme Court Judges too through an On Line Petition.
In 2019 the Aadhaar Legislation has been revised and passed by the two houses of the Parliament of India making it Legal. I am no Legal Eagle so my Opinion carries no weight except with people opposed to the very concept.
In 2019, this Blog now just captures on a Daily Basis list of Articles Published on anything to do with Aadhaar as obtained from Daily Google Searches and nothing more. Cannot burn the midnight candle any longer.
"In Matters of Conscience, the Law of Majority has no place"- Mahatma Gandhi
Ram Krishnaswamy
Sydney, Australia.

Aadhaar

The UIDAI has taken two successive governments in India and the entire world for a ride. It identifies nothing. It is not unique. The entire UID data has never been verified and audited. The UID cannot be used for governance, financial databases or anything. It’s use is the biggest threat to national security since independence. – Anupam Saraph 2018

When I opposed Aadhaar in 2010 , I was called a BJP stooge. In 2016 I am still opposing Aadhaar for the same reasons and I am told I am a Congress die hard. No one wants to see why I oppose Aadhaar as it is too difficult. Plus Aadhaar is FREE so why not get one ? Ram Krishnaswamy

First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.-Mahatma Gandhi

In matters of conscience, the law of the majority has no place.Mahatma Gandhi

“The invasion of privacy is of no consequence because privacy is not a fundamental right and has no meaning under Article 21. The right to privacy is not a guaranteed under the constitution, because privacy is not a fundamental right.” Article 21 of the Indian constitution refers to the right to life and liberty -Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi

“There is merit in the complaints. You are unwittingly allowing snooping, harassment and commercial exploitation. The information about an individual obtained by the UIDAI while issuing an Aadhaar card shall not be used for any other purpose, save as above, except as may be directed by a court for the purpose of criminal investigation.”-A three judge bench headed by Justice J Chelameswar said in an interim order.

Legal scholar Usha Ramanathan describes UID as an inverse of sunshine laws like the Right to Information. While the RTI makes the state transparent to the citizen, the UID does the inverse: it makes the citizen transparent to the state, she says.

Good idea gone bad
I have written earlier that UID/Aadhaar was a poorly designed, unreliable and expensive solution to the really good idea of providing national identification for over a billion Indians. My petition contends that UID in its current form violates the right to privacy of a citizen, guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution. This is because sensitive biometric and demographic information of citizens are with enrolment agencies, registrars and sub-registrars who have no legal liability for any misuse of this data. This petition has opened up the larger discussion on privacy rights for Indians. The current Article 21 interpretation by the Supreme Court was done decades ago, before the advent of internet and today’s technology and all the new privacy challenges that have arisen as a consequence.

Rajeev Chandrasekhar, MP Rajya Sabha

“What is Aadhaar? There is enormous confusion. That Aadhaar will identify people who are entitled for subsidy. No. Aadhaar doesn’t determine who is eligible and who isn’t,” Jairam Ramesh

But Aadhaar has been mythologised during the previous government by its creators into some technology super force that will transform governance in a miraculous manner. I even read an article recently that compared Aadhaar to some revolution and quoted a 1930s historian, Will Durant.Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Rajya Sabha MP

“I know you will say that it is not mandatory. But, it is compulsorily mandatorily voluntary,” Jairam Ramesh, Rajya Saba April 2017.

August 24, 2017: The nine-judge Constitution Bench rules that right to privacy is “intrinsic to life and liberty”and is inherently protected under the various fundamental freedoms enshrined under Part III of the Indian Constitution

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the World; indeed it's the only thing that ever has"

“Arguing that you don’t care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don’t care about free speech because you have nothing to say.” -Edward Snowden

In the Supreme Court, Meenakshi Arora, one of the senior counsel in the case, compared it to living under a general, perpetual, nation-wide criminal warrant.

Had never thought of it that way, but living in the Aadhaar universe is like living in a prison. All of us are treated like criminals with barely any rights or recourse and gatekeepers have absolute power on you and your life.

Announcing the launch of the # BreakAadhaarChainscampaign, culminating with events in multiple cities on 12th Jan. This is the last opportunity to make your voice heard before the Supreme Court hearings start on 17th Jan 2018. In collaboration with @no2uidand@rozi_roti.

UIDAI's security seems to be founded on four time tested pillars of security idiocy

1) Denial

2) Issue fiats and point finger

3) Shoot messenger

4) Bury head in sand.

God Save India

Wednesday, March 14, 2018

12959 - Aadhaar Articles dated 13th March 2018



Business Standard
The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has termed French security researcher Elliot Alderson's claims as irresponsible for questioning the Aadhaar system. The researcher had claimed gaining access to details of 20,000 Aadhaar cards by simply searching on the internet. UIDAI sent out 11 ...






Biometric Update
India's Electoral Commission has filed a request with the Supreme Court to make linking Aadhaar numbers with voter ID cards mandatory in order to prevent voter fraud, the Financial Express reports. Efforts to link Aadhaar to the Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC) go back as far as February 2015, ...





MediaNama.com
In response to unstarred question 2347 in the Lok Sabha, the Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance said that as of the 5th of March, the number of Aadhaar cards linked with PAN is 16,65,82,421 and as of the 2nd of March 2018, the 8779.65 lakhs current and savings accounts have been linked with ...





Times of India
Yavatmal: A group of youngsters, who had volunteered to desilt wells to allow their use as water sources in view of the extreme scarcity of drinking water, found thousands of original Aadhaar cards dumped in a well on Sunday. The cards were packed in nylon gunny bags, and weighed down with rocks.




Scroll.in
When it comes to the government's Aadhaar biometric ID project, the “fait accompli” argument, by which an act is justified not on its own merit but simply because it has already been carried out, already seems to be operating. The argument against enrollment seem redundant, considering that hundreds ...






Hindustan Times
On January 18, a policeman showed up at the door of Abdul Hafeez, a 37-year-old businessman in Kulwakurthy in Telangana's Mahbubnagar district, and asked to record his fingerprints, Aadhaar number, phone numbers, social media accounts, voter ID, passport, and the names and numbers of his ...






Little India
The Aadhaar Act, 2016 says anybody who has stayed in India for 182 days or more in the 12 months before applying for the card is eligible for one. ... While many Indians are in a tizzy over Aadhaar (to get one or not, to link your bank account or not) several foreigners based in India have quietly opted for ...






The Arunachal Times
PANGIN, Mar 12: An urgent coordination meeting regarding cent percent Aadhaar enrolment of school children under all schools and Anganwadi centres of the ICDS department of entire Siang district was convened on Monday at the DC's conference hall here to get first hand information on the issues ...






Times of India
My views on Aadhaar are not inconsistent and I have no intention to embarrass anyone. I believe some form of Aadhaar should be there but my only worry is about the possible leakage of information from the Aadhaar database. I have been fighting legally to incorporate the informed consent clause in ...






The Tribune
Pregnant women visiting the Government Multi-Speciality Hospital (GMSH) in Sector-16 and the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) in Sector 32 for delivery can get their Aadhaar card made at the hospitals itself as enrolment client multi-platform (ECMP) machines have benn installed ...








Times of India
The All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) staged protest in Parliament premises appealing to Government to not link social sector schemes to Aadhaar. The Parliament is set to witness another disruption full session, as opposition parties continue to demand discussion on PNB fraud case. Meanwhile ...






United News of India
Shatbdi Roy and other MPscarried placards reading: 'Say No to Aadhaar' and 'Do not link social sector schemes to Aadhaar'. ... the Bharatiya Janata Party of unleashing an "autocratic rule" in the country said the the linking of Aadhaar with mobile phone numbers and bank accounts should be opposed.






International Business Times, India Edition
From the filing of income tax returns to linking Aadhaar card with bank accounts, March 31 is the last date to complete many mandatory tasks. By : Nithya Nair. Mar 12, 2018 17:55 IST. Things to do before March 31, 2018. Aadhaar linking, tax filings, NPS contribution: Things to do before March 31 IANS.






thenortheasttoday.com
KOHIMA, March 13, 2018: Office of the Director of Postal Services, Kohima has informed the general public that Aadhaar enrollment and updating facility has started at Kohima Head Post Office, Mon Post Office, Tuensang Post Office, and Zunheboto Post Office. Enrollment is to be carried out through ...






The Indian Express
Those who have filled the application form with IDs other than aadhaar card, i.e passport number, ration card number, bank account number and aadhaar enrollment number will be able to make corrections. Candidates who have filled up the application form with aadhaar card cannot make changes as ...






The Hindu
The names of the applicant and father/husband are printed on one side of the Aadhaar card. When a photocopy of the card is submitted to any nationalised bank, the authorities point out that name of the applicant with initials (without expansion) is shown in the passbook. They insist that the applicant ...






News18
Only candidates who had furnished ID proof other than Aadhaar Card will be able to change their Identification Identity, Date of Birth, and Gender. They'll be able to update Aadhaar Number or Aadhaar Enrolment Number. Candidates from Assam, Meghalaya, and Jammu and Kashmir, will be to update ...




Newslaundry
The book, published by Hatchette India, also deals with PM Narendra Modi's 2014 general election campaign, movements such as 'Save The Internet' and case proceedings and online campaign over Aadhaar card and the concept of privacy. AAP chief and now Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal was ...






Inc42 Media
As per the guidelines, e-wallet users will be able to resume full services only after submitting their Aadhaar card details as part of the KYC process. Experts believe that due to such stringent measures rolled out by the RBI, these mobile wallet firms, which have reportedly acquired more than 500 Mn ...








News Track
A video on “How to bypass the password protection in the official #aadhaar #android #app in less than 1 minute” is coming in a couple of hours. " This tweet has been refixed more than 300 times in less than an hour. This tweet has ranged from funny to serious comments. He is described as a French ...






ANI News
Open the message received from Edenred on your mobile / emails wherein a personalized link has been sent to each user. Simply click on that link and you will be led to a personalised form page. Enter your Aadhaar number, an OTP will be sent for verification to your Aadhaar registered mobile number.






Tech Observer
Modi govt is creating students database with Aadhaar from Class I to XII ... Upendra Kushwaha in a written reply to a Lok Sabha informed that as an integral part of the U-DISE, the department of School Education & Literacy has initiated SDMIS in 2016-17 to collect child-wise data with Aadhaar number.