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

Thursday, November 30, 2017

12442 - Aadhaar Articles Dated 29th Now 2017



Economic Times
Aadhaar may not be mandatory as yet, but the list of transactions that require it is increasing. You need the 12-digit unique identity number to avail ...



Times of India
PUNE: A group of individuals from the city and across the country, who believe that Aadhaar should not be forced onto people, are hoping that the ...



Times of India
NEW DELHI: Amazon India, one of the largest online retailer in the country, is asking its customers to upload their Aadhaar number to its website to ...






Times of India
The accused already has an Aadhaar card. The alert came when he submitted the documents for ration card as recently police had busted a racket of ...






Times of India
Meerut: In a step to link bank accounts with Aadhaar cards, the Uttar Pradesh education director (basic) has instructed all district inspectors of schools ...






The Arunachal Times
In Arunachal Pradesh, little more than 11 lakh people have been brought under the Aadhaar enrolment, with 96.26 per cent Aadhaar enrolment in ...






eGov Magazine | Elets
Aadhaar linkage is a pivotal medium to avoid discrepancies in service delivery. It is sustainable and its significance is never going to fade, according ...






Zee News
We now digitally provide monetary benefits of various government schemes to the beneficiaries through Direct Benefit Transfer using Aadhaar.".






The New Indian Express
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With banks and mobile phone operators bombarding customers with messages prodding them to link Aadhaar before the ...
Catch 'em young - The New Indian Express



Trak.in (blog)
Despite repeated warnings and awareness campaign by Govt., scamsters are using Aadhaar factor to loot lakhs from gullible citizens. By Mohul ...








India TV
Ivanka Trump, who is leading a delegation of senior Trump administration officials and entrepreneurs, also spoke at summit's opening session themed ...


Odisha Television Ltd.
In case of any error or to prepare new Aadhaar card, pension beneficiaries can take help of the special desks. Fake recipients can be traced with this ...






Deccan Herald
In August 2017, Abhinav Srivastava, a Bengaluru-based IT professional, was arrested for stealing Aadhaar data. He piggybacked on the e-hospital ...






MENAFN.COM
Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) is mandated to issue an easily verifiable 12-digit random number as Unique Identity - Aadhaar to all ...






MENAFN.COM
Under the Direct Benefit Transfer Scheme, the subsidy is transferred directly to your bank account. Linking Aadhaar is mandatory for it as it ensures a ...






TODAYonline
Aadhaar, noted the Harvard Business Review, is the only non-US platform “to have broken the 1-billion-user threshold and the only such system to ...






Moneycontrol.com
Shukla said the BJP had criticised the Congress government's Aadhaar and MGNREGA schemes when in opposition, but is now implementing them.






Times of India
Though India's share of internet traffic is modest, it is growing and moreover, Modi government's initiatives like Aadhaar, MyGov, Bhim-UPI, Aadhaar ...






NDTV
The business correspondents will also be able to verify the users with Aadhaar, and payments can be routed by AEPS (Aadhaar Enabled Payments ...



The New Indian Express
Aadhaar covers 1.15 bn people; 40 mn digital transactions Aadhaar covers 1.15 bn people; 40 mn digital transactions happening daily, says PM.






India Today
To collect your JioPhone, you should carry along your Aadhaar details to the store. The message that people are receiving reads -- "Congratulations.






The Asian Age
The Chairperson of the CWC strongly objected to the girls being sent back to the brothels as all the girls appeared to be minors and their Aadhaar ...



Morung Express
“The commission earlier tried to introduce Aadhaar and mobile numbers in the election process, but due to pending litigation in the Supreme Court, ...






Free Press Journal
Complainant Jayant alleged that some unidentified person stole his wallet at aadhaar registration centre in LIG area on Monday. The complainant ...



12441 - Aadhaar Articles Dated 28th Now 2017



Economic Times
NEW DELHI: The government on Monday requested the Supreme Court to put off hearing on the legality of Aadhaar to next year, with an assurance ...



BuzzFeed News
“[Being asked for my Aadhaar] was like being blackmailed to link [it] with my ... Amazon told BuzzFeed News that the company asks for Aadhaar to ...



The Hindu
The Department of Posts has said that Aadhaar and mobile numbers are mandatory for opening all post office small saving schemes, public provident ...






The Hindu
But for a special Aadhaar enrolment drive, the hapless woman would have probably spent the rest of her life in the shelter. Venkata Lakshmamma, 45 ...






Times of India
NEW DELHI: State-owned LIC has cautioned policyholders against sharing their Aadhaar number through SMS, saying it has not operationalised any ...



The Indian Express
The callers took their debit card details as well as Aadhaar numbers claiming their cards would be otherwise blocked, and then made fraudulent ...






Times of India
BHUBANESWAR: Buoyed by recent establishment of the identity of a rescued child with the help of Aadhaar data, the child welfare committee (CWC) ...






Hindu Business Line
As the government is mulling to link property transactions to Aadhaar, market watchers note that while the move would help in weeding out benami ...






Firstpost (satire)
New Delhi: Government of India has launched a new app which would help people to know what needs to be linked with Aadhaar before which ...






Khaleej Times
The Consulate General of India (CGI) in Dubai reiterated to UAE residents that most NRIs, PIO's and OCI card holders may not be eligible for Aadhaar ...






Times Now
Mumbai: From insurance policies to mobile SIM, the UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India) has mandated the Aadhaar for carrying out a ...



Firstpost
However, not having an Aadhaar number blocks his way. All the schools he approaches in the area require parents to submit copies of their Aadhaar ...






The Quint
The Supreme Court on Monday refrained from setting a date for it to hear either the main case challenging the constitutionality of the Aadhaar scheme, ...






The Tribune
“The subsidy on domestic gas cylinder and other goods goes to that account of consumer, which is last linked to Aadhaar Card. In such case the last ...






Financial Express
From online linking of UAN with Aadhaar to auto transfer of PF accounts, here is a look at EPFO's 6 recent digital initiatives to make your life simpler.






The Shillong Times
In a statement to the media on Monday, various organisations and students' groups, including the Garo Students' Union, said Aadhaar, “in real sense”, ...



The Wire
The Srikrishna Committee was set up on July 31 following a government decision to make Aadhaar compulsory for all its services. The government ...

12440 - Govt releases white paper on data protection for public comments -


The government has asked for public comments on a white paper about developing a “data protection framework for India”, before a committee of experts begins consultations on the subject.
Neha Alawadhi


The government has asked for public comments on a white paper about developing a “data protection framework for India”, before a committee of experts begins consultations on the subject.

In August, the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) had taken the first steps towards drafting a data protection bill, by constituting a committee of ten experts, which is headed by former Supreme Court Judge BN Srikrishna.

“A White Paper has been drafted to solicit public comments on what shape a data protection law must take. The White Paper outlines the issues that a majority of the members of the Committee feel require incorporation in a law, relevant experiences from other countries and concerns regarding their incorporation, certain provisional views based on an evaluation of the issues vis-à-vis the objectives of the exercise, and specific questions for the public. On the basis of the responses received, the Committee will conduct public consultations with citizens and stakeholders shortly to hear all voices that wish and need to be heard on this subject,” said MeitY in a post on its website.


The deadline for submission of comments on the white paper is December 31.

The white paper details issues such as the need for data protection in an increasingly digital India, and the possible approaches that can be looked at.
It also discusses issues concerning the contentious data collection issues around India’s biometric identity document- Aadhaar.

“Despite its attempt to incorporate various data protection principles, Aadhaar has come under considerable public criticism,” the white paper notes. “First, though seemingly voluntary, possession of Aadhaar has become mandatory in practice, and has been viewed by many as coercive collection of personal data by the State. Concerns have also been raised vis-a-vis the provision on Aadhaar based authentication which permits collection information about an individual every time an authentication request is made to the UIDAI.”
The paper acknowledges that  despite an obligation to adopt adequate security safeguards, “no database is 100 percent secure”, and proposes to study the “interplay between any proposed data protection framework and the existing Aadhaar framework”.
It also discusses whether wide exemptions can be made to the data protection norms in the interest of national security.
The white paper has asked for responses on specific issues of the territorial scope and application of a data protection law in India, ensuring effective compliance by foreign entities when adverse orders are issued against them, applicability and responsibility of individuals and corporate sector, personal data protection, retrospective protection to individuals under the proposed law.
It also seeks to define personal data, sensitive personal data, what processing of data collected by different entities mean, defining consent, child’s consent, and limiting data storage and so on.
A comprehensive legislation on data protection in the digital world has been a crying need in India for the past few years. With more and more dependence on electronic and digital systems, including the inter linkages to Aadhaar, it is pertinent that India come up with laws that will oversee and penalise the storage and misuse of data.
Also, in view of the massive data breaches and misuse that affect Indian and global organisations alike, a data protection in important.

12439 - You can’t make citizens safer by making them more vulnerable. Aadhaar does exactly that - - Economic Times


November 26, 2017, 11:14 PM IST Economic Times in ET Commentary | India | ET

By Nikhil Pahwa and Anand V

In October 2016, Delhi Police busted an Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) spy ring and found that Mehmood Akhtar had an Aadhaar card naming him as Mehboob Rajput. In May this year, the Central Crime Branch found that three Pakistanis had obtained Aadhaar cards in Bengaluru through a middleman for Rs 100 each. More recently, Zeebo Asalina, an Uzbek national arrested in Orissa, had an Aadhaar card naming her as Duniya Khan.

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) chairman and former CEO of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) R S Sharma suggested in an article in this publication (‘The Phoney Aadhar Bogey’, ET Edit, Nov 23, goo.gl/supsVq) that security agencies may have a better chance of nabbing potential terrorists if all mobile connections are verified using Aadhaar. There is a major flaw in this assertion.

Shaky Aadhaar of the ID
What is common in the aforementioned cases is that these Aadhaar cards were based on forged documents. Since UIDAI does not conduct verification by itself, it retains the flaws of these documents and is not ‘fraud-resistant’. In fact, once they have Aadhaar, things may get easier for potential terrorists, given the incorrect perception that it is foolproof.

Sharma rightly points out that paper IDs are not good for privacy since they can be reused for other purposes. However, Aadhaar is worse, because once data is shared with hundreds of third parties, it is no longer secure. Some of this was made evident by the fact that, in July, a site called magica pk.com briefly allowed anyone to check personal information of Reliance Jio mobile phone users. Allegedly, this was due to a security vulnerability with a Reliance Jio vendor.

While we do agree with Sharma’s assessment that electronic Know Your Customer (KYC) is cheaper for telecom operators and banks, it is costlier for citizens: the cost of the loss of personal information is much higher than the benefit of collecting it. UIDAI has no control once data leaves its system via eKYC, which has a tick-box approach to consent and, apparently, no checks thereafter.

HDFC Bank’s terms and conditions authorise it to use and disclose customers’ Aadhaar numbers and other details to third parties. Next year, there is a plan to roll out Aadhaar-linked programmes like a Public Credit Registry with transaction data, and the National Health Information Network electronic health records. The risk of personal information leaks increases with more services getting linked to Aadhaar due to security vulnerabilities, or sheer incompetence of the government or third parties.

Some Aadhaar-related data has already been compromised. UIDAI admits that over 210 government departments had published personal information and Aadhaar numbers online.
According to a Centre for Internet & Society (CIS) India report (‘Information Security Practices of Aadhaar (or Lack Thereof)’, Amber Sinha & Srinivas Kodali, goo.gl/xWhi91), such data for 130 million had been published by four schemes alone. This, despite the fact that disclosure of Aadhaar numbers is illegal as per Section 29 (4) of the Aadhaar Act.

This law treats the Aadhaar number on par with biometrics in terms of sensitivity of information. So, Sharma’s contention that only biometrics need to be kept secure is misplaced. In any case, biometrics are the least secure form of authentication, given that they can be cloned from photographs, and you leave fingerprints on every glass of water you pick up.

Social Security Itself Lacks It
When data for millions of people has already been compromised by the government, Sharma’s ad hominem allegation that critics are “alarmists” and “motivated” is an unfortunate tactic to divert attention from badly designed architecture, execution mistakes, security failures and the yet-tobe-addressed risks.
The fact remains that National IDs and associated data do get hacked and leaked. Estonia, the poster child of digital governance, has had to suspend its digital ID cards due to cybersecurity-related vulnerabilities. Spain is facing similar issues. The recent Equifax hack in the US left social security numbers for nearly half the country (143 million Americans) compromised. The government’s cavalier attitude towards privacy — that privacy cannot be at the cost of innovation — which Union information technology minister Ravi Shankar Prasad put forth at the prestigious Global Conference on Cyberspace (GCCS) in New Delhi on November 23, indicates the willingness to put citizens’ personal safety at risk: that your privacy is a price that GoI is willing to pay for making it easier for businesses to be built around your data.

While there are benefits that might accrue from customisation of thousands of services that might otherwise not have had your data, a government that forcibly takes sensitive and personal information from you, and a court that has allowed this to happen despite appeals to stop it, has acted against you and 1.3 billion others.

All your data, linked to a single ID for de-duplication, and accessible to the government under unspecified ‘national security’ considerations, without sufficient checks and balances and judicial oversight, is also dangerous in the hands of a future government that might look to retain power by any means necessary. Mass surveillance, of which Aadhaar is an enabler, is an unnecessary and disproportionate infringement of rights, and dangerous for democracy. You can’t make citizens safer by making them more vulnerable.

(Pahwa is founder, MediaNama, and Anand is an independent researcher on the Aadhaar project)


DISCLAIMER : Views expressed above are the author's own.

12438 - Aadhaar: Lawyers body suggests setting up of privacy commission - Economic Times


BY PTI | UPDATED: NOV 26, 2017, 08.35 PM IST

In the wake of growing concerns over Aadhaar data misuse, a lawyers body has suggested setting up a 'privacy commission' to regulate and protect individuals' information.
The Indian National Bar Association (INBA), however, has supported collection and integration of citizens' data, saying it was "necessary for better and effective governance delivery".
"Given the ongoing concerns, controversies surrounding the misuse of individual data (Aadhaar), it is obligatory that the gov ..
Read more at:


12437 - Willing to extend deadline for Aadhaar linking to services till March 31: Centre to SC- Times Now


Updated: Nov 27, 2017 | 17:23 IST | ET Now Digital

New Delhi: The Centre is willing to extend the deadline for mandatory linking of Aadhaar to various services till March 31, 2018, it told the Supreme Court on Monday. 

“We are willing to extend the deadline for mandatory linking of Aadhaar to various services till March 31 next year,” the Centre told the apex court.

Aadhaar is a 12 digit unique-identity number issued to all Indian residents based on their biometric and demographic data.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is likely to set up a Constitution bench next week to hear the issue of stay against mandatory linking of Aadhaar with bank accounts, mobile phone numbers etc.
The matter was mentioned before a bench headed by chief justice Dipak Misra who said that the court would take it up in the week to come.

Also, the apex court said that it would hear a batch of petitions challenging mandatory linking of Aadhaar for granting various services to citizen after its constitution bench concludes hearing the Delhi-Centre dispute.

The government has made Aadhaar card mandatory for carrying out a number of tasks. These include linking bank accounts and mobile phone number. You are also required to link your 12-digit unique identification number Aadhaar to mutual fund holdings, insurance policy, PPF and small savings schemes such as Kisan Vikas Patra.

Recently, the government has made Aadhaar number mandatory for obtaining benefits under the Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana (VPBY) pension scheme. The scheme is meant for senior citizens, which is implemented through Life Insurance Corp. of India (LIC).

Here are the important deadlines you should not miss:
Deadline for linking Aadhaar card with PPF, NSC: December 31, 2017
The government has made Aadhaar mandatory for opening a Post Office account or investing in small savings schemes such as National Savings Certificate (NSC), PPF and Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP), Aadhaar is a must.
Existing depositors who have not provided Aadhaar number at the time of application for such deposit "shall submit his Aadhaar number to the post office savings bank or deposit office concerned, on or before December 31, 2017," said government notification.


Deadline to link Aadhaar with PAN: December 31, 2017
The government has extended the deadline for linking PAN with biometric identifier Aadhaar by four months to December 31. The deadline for linking PAN with Aadhaar for taxpayers was to end on August 31. The deadline for linking PAN with Aadhaar previously was July 31 but was extended to August 31.
"Aadhaar was to be linked with PAN by 31st August 2017. The date for linking Aadhaar with PAN has been extended till 31st December 2017," the CBDT, the apex policymaking body of the Income Tax Department, noted. An Aadhaar PAN link is mandatory for processing of income tax returns (ITRs) for the assessment year 2017-18.
Deadline to link Aadhaar with mobile SIM: 6 February 2018
The Aadhaar-Mobile SIM linking should be completed by February 6, under e-KYC verification, the Centre told the Supreme Court. The Centre also mandated production of 12-digit unique Aadhaar number for opening new bank accounts.
While citing an order passed by the apex court, the Centre said that it was the SC which had approved the rule for mandatory Aadhaar-mobile number linkage in the Lokniti Foundation case on February 6, 2017, while giving a window of one year.


Deadline to submit Aadhaar details to banks/financial institutions - December 31, 2017
The government has made it mandatory for all banks and financial institutions to mention the Aadhaar details of clients in the KYC (Know your Customer) document. If you fail to link it to your bank account by December 31 this year, it may even become inoperable.
Know your customer (KYC) is the process of a business identifying and verifying the identity of its clients and a KYC document basically provides all the details that authenticate the identity of a customer.

Deadline to link mutual fund investments to Aadhaar: December 31, 2017
The government has been made mandatory for mutual fund houses to obtain their customers' Aadhaar numbers and link the same to their respective accounts.
The move came after a recent amendment in the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) Rules, 2017.
By linking mutual fund investment with Aadhaar, one authorizes the agent for seeding one's Aadhaar number to the MF schemes.
"As per recent amendments to Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) Rules, 2017, Financial Institutions like Mutual Funds are mandated to obtain Aadhaar Number from their customers and link the same to the respective accounts,” the website stated.
The deadline to link mutual fund investments to Aadhaar is December 31.

Deadline to give Aadhaar details to avail social security schemes - December 31, 2017
Aadhaar number has to be provided for all social security schemes by December 31, 2017. In order to avail pension, LPG cylinders or government scholarships, one must provide his or her Aadhaar card details.


Recently, amidst a tug of war between the central government and its critics over the validity and omnipresence of the Aadhaar program, UIDAI has revealed that more than 200 central and state government websites publicly displayed details such as names and addresses of some Aadhaar beneficiaries.

12436 - Constitution Bench likely to take up petitions challenging Aadhaar-linkage schemes - The Hindu


NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 27, 2017 11:35 IST


Venugopal had said a Constitution Bench may be set up to decide all the Aadhaar issues once and for all.

Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dipak Misra on Monday said he will consider listing soon the clutch of petitions challenging the Aadhaar scheme before a Constitution Bench.
Both senior advocate Shyam Divan and Attorney General K.K. Venugopal made a joint mention to the Chief Justice Bench in the morning.
On October 30, the CJI had indicated that a Constitution Bench would hear the petitions against the validity of Aadhaar scheme from November last week. The petitions have been hanging in limbo in the Supreme Court since 2014.

A five-judge Constitution Bench is currently hearing a batch of petitions on the Centre-Delhi government power tussle over the administration of the National Capital. It is probable that the Aadhaar cases may be listed after the hearing in these petitions are wrapped up, probably next week.

The deadline for Aadhaar-bank account linking is drawing close on December 31. The Aadhaar-mobile phone linking is due on February 6, 2018. Both notifications have been challenged as a violation of fundamental right to privacy.

In October, the Centre had joined forces with Mr. Divan for an early hearing of the Aadhaar cases. Mr. Venugopal had said that Bench falsehoods have been spread about Aadhaar linking, including how Aadhaar is a must for CBSE students to appear in Class 10 and 12 exams.

Mr. Venugopal had said a Constitution Bench may be set up to decide all the Aadhaar issues once and for all.

The decision to set up a five-judge Bench has come despite Justice Rohinton Nariman's separate judgment in the nine-judge Bench declaring right to privacy as a fundamental right. Justice Nariman's judgment had directed the Aadhaar petitions to be posted for hearing before the “original” three-judge Bench.
This 'original' Bench led by Justice J. Chelameswar had referred the petitions for hearing before a five-judge Bench. The five-judge had found it necessary to first decide whether privacy was a fundamental right or not before hearing the Aadhaar petitions. It had referred the legal question to a nine-judge Bench, which came out with the historic judgment in favour of the common man's fundamental right to privacy against State intrusions.
The nine-judge Bench verdict has a crucial bearing in the Aadhaar petitions, which have argued that Aadhaar's use of biometric details like fingerprints and iris scans violate bodily and informational privacy.

The petitioners argue that mandatory requirement of Aadhaar for these schemes “constrict rights and freedoms which a citizen has long been enjoying unless and until they part with their personal biometric information to the government”.
The petitions have termed the Aadhaar Act of 2016 as unconstitutional and contrary to concept of limited and accountable governance.

12435 - Aadhaar linking deadline may move to March 31, Centre tells SC - Economic Times


By Samanwaya Rautray

NEW DELHI: The government on Monday requested the Supreme Court to put off hearing on the legality of Aadhaar to next year, with an assurance that it would extend the deadline to link the biometric ID with various services by three months to March 31, 2018. 

However, a bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra indicated that it would soon hear a plea for interim relief in the case. 

Earlier, attorney general KK Venugopal told the court that an expert committee under Justice BN Srikrishna had come up with a draft white paper on the existing data protection regime and suggested some changes in the law as it stood now. These include protection for data under the Aadhaar Act. 

Among other things, the white paper suggests minimal data collection and deterrent penalties to deter leakage. 

However, the final paper would only come by February, the central government’s senior most law officer told a bench headed by the Chief Justice of India, requesting that the Constitution bench of the court hear the matter only after that. 

But senior advocate Shyam Divan rejected the suggestion, and insisted that the court deal with the plea for interim relief before December 31, 2017, while a final hearing was awaited. 

The government had at the last hearing said that it would not insist that those who already have Aadhaar link their unique identification numbers to their bank accounts and mobile phones before March 31. 

However, those who had not applied for Aadhaar would be allowed to avail of social security benefits only on the condition that they would apply for it. 

Those opposing Aadhaar said such requirements would hit the vulnerable the most. Also, it would leave citizens vulnerable to scrutiny and would not be a reasonable infringement on the liberties of citizens, they said. 

The Chief Justice said he might hear the plea for interim relief after the existing Constitution bench wrapped up its hearings. 

The hearing could happen in the first fortnight of December, before the court’s winter recess begins. 

Read more at:

12434 - Aadhaar Articles Dated 27th Nov 2017



Economic Times
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court today said it would hear a batch of petitions challenging mandatory linking of Aadhaar for granting various services ...



Economic Times
In the wake of growing concerns over Aadhaar data misuse, a lawyers body has suggested setting up a 'privacy commission' to regulate and protect ...






Times of India (blog)
In October 2016, Delhi Police busted an Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) spy ring and found that Mehmood Akhtar had an Aadhaar card naming him as ...



Times of India
To receive the benefit of LPG subsidy, you need to link your LPG account with Aadhaar. Also, linking your bank account with Aadhaar will make ...



Times of India
The importance of linking Aadhaar with documents such as bank accounts, mobile numbers, passports, and others has increased as all government ...



Times of India
Muzaffarnagar: Following complaints by booth officials, police seized more than two dozen Aadhaar cards, which were allegedly fake, from voters at ...






Times of India
Just like other important documents and accounts, linking of Driving Licence with Aadhaar would soon become important. As Driving Licence is issued ...






Economic Times
Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Monday said government schemes like Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) and Jan Aadhaar Money (JAM) are ...






Bangalore Mirror
Once the corporation puts in place an Aadhaar-based attendance and payroll management system, employees' attendance will be marked based on ...






Daily Pioneer
For facilitating the pensioners in making their Aadhaar card and linking it with the accounts, rural development and social welfare department ...






The Sentinel
After years of uncertainty, people of the State will finally be able to enrol themselves for Aadhaar cards as Dispur has cleared the decks to begin the ...






Trak.in (blog)
CBSE has just released the dates for applying JEE Mains-2018, and the mandatory Aadhaar clause has been mentioned to avoid any confusion.



Moneycontrol.com
“Despite its attempt to incorporate various data protection principles, Aadhaar has come under considerable public criticism,” the white paper notes.






Financial Express
LIC of India has issued an important notification regarding linking of Aadhaar number with your LIC policy through SMS. The notice by LIC has been ...






Moneycontrol.com
"Aadhaar multiplies the power of the state to keep track of everybody over time," he said, flagging apprehensions that it could lead to stifling of dissent, ...