AADHAAR RELATED ARTICLES: 11925 - Aadhaar? It's your choice

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, August 30, 2017

11925 - Aadhaar? It's your choice - Khaleej Times

Aadhaar? It's your choice

Nazeem Beegum /Dubai

Filed on August 28, 2017

https://www.khaleejtimes.com/aadhar-its-your-choice

To apply or not to apply for an Aadhaar card - that's the million dollar question on the minds of several Indian expatriates ever since the Indian government made the document mandatory for Indian residents to file their tax returns.

The Unique Identification Authority of India, which issues the Aadhaar card, has recently clarified that the document is not mandatory for non-resident Indians (NRIs). However, NRIs are of the opinion that the government cannot deny them right to get an Aadhaar card, which is a unique identity for all Indian citizens.

In an exclusive interview with Khaleej Times, T.V.S. Ramana Rao, regional head, Middle East, West Asia and North Africa at the State Bank of India (SBI), sheds more light on the contentious issue as well as how the bank functions for 'every Indian', including millions of expats living in different parts of the world. Here are excerpts of the interview:

Q - Can you tell us why NRIs are not allowed to apply for an Aadhaar card? Responding to our earlier report, Indian expats from as far as the US said they faced several problems with bank transactions, including fund transfer. Is it because of not having an Aadhaar card?

Every Indian has the right to get an Aadhaar card. However, NRIs need not obtain the Aadhaar as it is required only for Indian residents. If somebody is keen to get the Aadhaar card, they can apply for it showing their address and ID proof. People who have already obtained it before moving out of the country can ask the bank to link the card with their account. As per rules, NRIs don't need Aadhaar or PAN cards for any bank transaction, including fund transfer from NRE to NRO accounts.

Q - What about people of Indian origin who hold OIC cards? Do they need an Aadhaar card to operate their bank accounts and own properties in India? Are they liable to pay income tax?

Whether you are an NRI or PoI, if you earn any income inside India, it is liable for taxation. If you earn income outside India and qualify as an NRI, you are not supposed to pay tax on that income. The threshold for taxable income is ?250,000 per year and only those who have income in excess of this limit have to file a return. Interest earned on non-resident external (NRE) accounts or foreign currency non-repatriable (FCNR) accounts are not subjected to taxation. But interest on any other deposit is subjected to taxation.

Q - Why is there a hesitation to issue Aadhaar cards to NRIs?

There is no such reluctance. Anybody can go to an Aadhar enrollment centre and get it free of cost. If somebody is keen to get it, submit the address and identity proof. NRIs can give their passport as identity proof. And if the address proof matches with the identity proof, they can apply for an Aadhaar card.

Q - Will granting Aadhaar cards to NRIs help the government curb benami-operated accounts?

For that, banks depend on KYC (know your customer) details. Nobody can send amounts disproportionate to their income. The Central Bank monitors it. When somebody tries to send a huge amount which does not match their profile, alerts are generated in the anti-money laundering cell. If any irregularity is found, banks file a suspicious transaction report and report it to the government, not to the customer.

Q - SBI savings bank account holders complain of lower deposit rates. Will this not affect the saving habit of expats?

The savings bank rate has recently come down from four to 3.5 per cent. I don't think it will affect expats' saving habit because people don't consider interest rate on the savings bank account. They maintain these accounts for routine expenses or until they decide on further investment. For example, before the merger, one-third of State Bank of Travancore deposits were from their NRI clientele. Substantial savings come only from individuals and to some extent from corporates.Though it depends on savings capacity of a person, Indian expats save in whatever way they can.

- nazeem@khaleejtimes.com

Nazeem Beegum