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

Tuesday, September 19, 2017

12075 - Calls it ‘grave injustice’, goes to SC: Man refuses to obtain Aadhaar for self, family - Indian Express


Son denied college admission, hospital treatment without it


Calling it “grave injustice”, Andheri resident John Abrahim has refused to get an Aadhaar card for himself and his family. The impediments he faced in the absence of the card — his son’s college admission, treatment in a hospital, his retirement benefits — have hardly been a deterrent. “Making me do something and making a single card the only reliable proof in the county is grave injustice. I am against this system which is forcing me to do something,” Abrahim said.

His 17-year-old son was allegedly denied admission to 12th standard in St Xavier’s College for not possessing an Aadhaar card. Most recently, his son also faced trouble getting treatment in a hospital in Andheri, which requires Aadhaar as proof for registration of the patient’s name.

But the father is still adamant in his fight against the system. Recently, after having taken voluntary retirement from the Indian Railways, he does not know if he will be given his pension in the absence of an Aadhaar card. 

In August this year, he had approached the Bombay High Court seeking directions to grant admission to his son in 12th standard in St Xavier’s College without furnishing his son’s Aadhaar card or that of his wife’s. The High Court, however, refused to grant him any relief.

The court initially suggested that the petitioner John Abrahim submit the Aadhaar card as required under various recent government resolutions. If he did so, the court would consider issuing direction to the college and the Trust — Bombay St Xavier’s College Society — which runs and manages the college, to grant admission to his son besides granting a certain time for submission of the Aadhaar card to the college.

Abrahim, however, informed the court later that he was unwilling to obtain the Aadhaar card. “We fail to understand the instance of not obtaining the Aadhaar card. It appears that the petitioner (Abrahim) is adamant and wants to take a stand only for the purpose of adamancy. We are, therefore, not inclined to grant an interim relief,” Justice B R Gavai had said.

He then approached the Supreme Court. On September 4, the apex court sought a response from the Maharashtra government on the issue and granted two weeks to do so. “They are making Aadhaar compulsory everywhere. What is the point of insisting on it during admissions and denying my child his right to education over it?” questioned Abrahim. 

He added that while half the academic year for his son would be over during the time the apex court decides on the issue, he would continue his fight against Aadhaar. His son has now got admission in another college.

This is not the first instance of someone questioning the requirement of Aadhaar for admissions. A Division Bench of Justice A S Oka and Justice A A Sayyed had, in June 2016, dismissed a public interest litigation challenging the government resolution (GR) issued on April 21, 2015, by which every child, while securing admission to any school in the state, is required to submit a copy of his or her Aadhaar card.

For Abrahim, the recent Right to Privacy judgment is a step towards helping him in his fight against the system, “which is forcing him” to get the Aadhaar card made by making it the only valid document required to be linked right from bank accounts to telephone numbers.

While the Supreme Court’s ruling held that the Right to Privacy is a fundamental right, it was only limited to that issue. The matter of whether Aadhaar violates the right to privacy will be dealt with by the five-judge bench hearing the petitions since 2015. “My son was recently ill. I took him to a hospital near my residence in Andheri. Their file specifies that Aadhaar card is mandatory to register the name of my child. I questioned this and after arguing on the point with them, they finally conceded to treating my son,” said Abrahim.

Abrahim said his wife, who used to work in Cooper Hospital, has no issues in his fight against the system. “I have issues against Aadhaar on religious grounds,” he said. ruhi.bhasin@expressindia.com