AADHAAR RELATED ARTICLES: 7829 - e-Filing tax returns to get easier

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

Friday, April 24, 2015

7829 - e-Filing tax returns to get easier - Business Standard

e-Filing tax returns to get easier

Aadhaar-based electronic verification code will do away with the need to send physical ITR-V copies to Bengaluru

Ashley Coutinho | Mumbai April 21, 2015 Last Updated at 22:35 IST

With the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) announcing that the physical copy of income tax returns filed online will no longer have to be sent for verification for Aadhaar card holders, it will be a great relief for taxpayers who want to use this option.

A new Aadhaar-based electronic verification code will be given to such taxpayers to authenticate their transaction. The electronic verification code consists of a string of characters in the form of a locator number that gives a unique identifier to electronic documents.

A new row has been provided in the Income Tax Return (ITR) forms for assessment year 2015-16 to enable someone filing e-returns to provide his Aadhaar card number. Aadhaar is a 12-digit individual identification number issued by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).

Once the card number is punched in, the tax-payer will get a one-time password, or OTP, number on his or her mobile phone for verification. This verification number, then, has to be entered on the relevant ITR form to complete the process of e-filing.

The new process will do away with the need for sending physical copies for verification to the Centralised Processing Centre (CPC), Bengaluru. As of now, the copy of ITR-V, an acknowledgment slip generated on filing the income tax return online, has to be sent either by regular Indian postal service/ordinary post or speed post. Copies sent through courier are not accepted. The ITR-V has to reach CPC within 120 days of filing the return. It generally takes about three weeks to get acknowledgment of ITR-V receipt from CPC from the date of posting.

“There is always a possibility of non-receipt of ITR-V at CPC or acknowledgment of receipt getting delayed, in which case the copy has to be sent again,” said Kuldip Kumar, partner and leader - personal tax, PwC India, adding that the new system will do away with the need for tracking and resending forms for verification.

The new system will also do away with the need to digitally sign the ITR-V form. Creating digital signatures can cost up to Rs 1,500. “The cost for digital signatures can be prohibitive for small tax payers,” said Divakar Vijayasarthy, co-founder, MeetUrPro. According to Kumar, it would have probably been better if the government had linked the verification code to the PAN instead of Aadhaar, because all investment records are backed by PAN. Last month, the Supreme Court had asked the Centre and the states to stick to its earlier order that no person should be denied any benefits or made to suffer for not having Aadhaar.

“The said motive for enabling an Aadhaar card verification is to do away with the need for digital signatures or sending physical copies for verification. The real motive, however, seems to be to track the tax payers' income to the subsidy they avail,” said Vijayasarthy.

The flip side of the new system, according to Vijayasarthy, is that it will now be technically possible for anyone who has your Aadhaar and PAN card number to file returns without your knowledge. The PAN serves as the user ID for tax payers.

Tax-payers should remember that the new system is just an alternative to the existing system. This means, those e-filing returns can continue to send their ITR-V forms in physical form to the Bengaluru centre or use digital signatures. Those who do not have an Aadhaar card will also have to use the existing system. The due date for filing tax returns, either physical or online, is July 31. Individuals earning an income of Rs 10 lakh a year have to compulsorily e-file their returns.