AADHAAR RELATED ARTICLES: 12474 - Deadlines for linking Aadhaar with bank account, PAN, mobile valid: UIDAI

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, December 7, 2017

12474 - Deadlines for linking Aadhaar with bank account, PAN, mobile valid: UIDAI - Live Mint

Deadlines for linking Aadhaar with bank account, PAN, mobile valid: UIDAI

UIDAI says the deadlines for verifying bank accounts, PAN cards and mobile SIM cards with Aadhaar stand ‘valid and lawful’, and there is no change in them

New Delhi: The the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) said on Thursday that the deadlines for verifying bank accounts, permanent account number (PAN) cards and mobile SIM cards with the biometric ID stand “valid and lawful”, and there is no change in them.

While the deadline for verifying bank accounts and income tax PAN by providing Aadhaar is 31 December, for SIM cards it is 6 February.

Refuting social media messages, UIDAI said that as on date there is no stay from the Supreme Court on Aadhaar and its linking to various services. “That Aadhaar Act being in force, all notifications for requiring Aadhaar for various welfare programmes, verifying bank account, PAN card and SIM card with Aadhaar stand valid and lawful,” it said in a statement.

“Today’s legal position is that there is no stay as on 7 December 2017 from the Supreme Court on Aadhaar and its linking to various services,” it added.

The government has made it mandatory for verifying bank account and PAN to weed out black money and bring unaccounted wealth to book. The same for SIM has been mandated to establish identify of mobile phone users

“The mandatory requirements of Aadhaar for PAN, bank accounts, welfare programs, and SIM cards have been challenged in the Supreme Court and no stay has been granted. Therefore, it is clear that the video is outdated because it does not reflect the latest legal position as on today (December 7, 2017),” the statement said.

UIDAI said the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016 was passed by the Parliament on March 16, 2016 and notified in the Gazette of India on March 26, 2016.

“Therefore, subsequent notifications issued under section/s of Aadhaar Act for requiring Aadhaar as primary identifier by various ministries and departments of Government of India and States/UTs Governments for various services, benefits and subsidies hold the field today,” it said.

UIDAI asked people not to get misled by an outdated video doing rounds in the social media and WhatsApp and said “people should instead verify their banks accounts, investment accounts, SIM cards, etc as per the current laws and deadlines as early as possible to avoid any inconvenience.”

“UIDAI has clarified on a video circulated purportedly out of context of a lady lawyer on WhatsApp, Twitter and Social Media and said that the video refers to an order passed by the Supreme Court on 11 August 2015 when the court had restricted use of Aadhaar to only few programs,” the statement said.

The video, it said, does not reflect “true legal position” as it stands this day, because after the said Supreme Court order of 2015, Aadhaar Act was passed by Parliament in 2016. Subsequent to the Act, notifications have been issued making Aadhaar mandatory for availing various welfare benefits such as public distribution services, cooking gas LPG, MNREGS, scholarships and pensions.

The Income Tax Act was amended in March 2017 to make Aadhaar mandatory for PAN cards. On 1 June, PML Rules have been amended to make Aadhaar mandatory for linking all bank accounts, insurance, pension, mutual funds and DMAT accounts.

“Supreme Court too in Lokniti Foundation case through an order passed in February 2017 has approved verification of all SIM cards with Aadhaar,” UIDAI said. The Apex Court has upheld the linkage of Aadhaar with PAN in the case of Binoy Viswam vs Union of India which mandates Aadhaar for income tax returns and PAN.

First Published: Thu, Dec 07 2017. 02 50 PM IST