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, June 22, 2018

13691 - You can de-link Aadhaar from different services. Here's how - Newsbytes

You can de-link Aadhaar from different services. Here's how
15 Jun 2018 | By Gogona Saikia

The government has been embroiled in a legal battle with citizens' groups since months, over the apparent usefulness of Aadhaar and its alleged drawbacks.

During the hearing, many hitherto unknown things came to light. For example, it was never mandatory to link Aadhaar with SIM, the SC noted.

New reports suggest citizens are also allowed to de-link their Aadhaar from various services. Here's more.

In context: Here's how to de-link Aadhaar from various services
15 Jun 2018
You can de-link Aadhaar from different services. Here's how

History
All about the Aadhaar scheme
The Aadhaar project began in 2009. Under the initiative, each applicant is assigned a 12-digit unique identification number (UID), which is linked to their demographic as well as biometric details (fingerprints and iris scans).
Though it was initially touted as a voluntary ID, the government has gradually made it mandatory to access a number of schemes including bank accounts and SIM cards.

Why did the government insist on mandatory Aadhaar?
The government said linking Aadhaar to various schemes like bank accounts and SIM cards was mandatory since it would help remove fraudulent accounts and eventually, black money. The Center was also reportedly planning to make Aadhaar mandatory for driving license, voter ID and more.

Drawbacks

So why the need to de-link?
Over time, reports have emerged about blatant misuse of Aadhaar after being linked to agencies.
For example, Airtel was found to be opening bank accounts for customers without their "informed consent" once they linked Aadhaar to their SIM.
Critics also alleged Aadhaar breach citizens' right to privacy, and personal data is at risk of cyber attacks and other crimes.
Laws

Here's what the law says on de-linking of Aadhaar
Recent reports state that once Aadhaar is linked, it can also be de-linked at anytime.
According to Point 5 of UIDAI's Compendium of Regulations, "The Aadhaar number holder may, at any time, revoke consent given to a KUA (e-KYC User Agency) for storing his e-KYC data or for sharing it with third parties, and the KUA shall delete the e-KYC data and cease any further sharing."

What does it mean?
This covers all public and private agencies - banks, telcos, PAN, voter ID, LPG connection, passport, ration card and more. Since no company has explicitly mentioned the process for de-linking Aadhaar, the first step is to contact customer care and enquire about the method.
Implication

How far will laws on paper take us?
However, it might not be easy. TBI reports they tried de-linking Aadhaar from SIM, but when they called up customer-care, the executive insisted there was no way to do it.
It won't be a rarity: though the government ruled Aadhaar isn't mandatory for getting SIM cards, telcos continue to send away new customers without this document.
Proper implementation of laws needs to be ensured.

Related Timelines

INDIA 15 May 2018

Aadhaar an additional facility, not mandatory for getting pension: Government
CLICK ON TITLE TO SEE ORIGINAL ARTICLE - Posted by
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