SC seeks ECI, Centre responses on plea against Aadhaar use beyond identity proof

New Delhi: Supreme Court on Tuesday sought responses of the Election Commission of India, central and state governments on a plea seeking directions to ensure that Aadhaar is used solely as proof of identity and not as proof of citizenship, domicile, address or date of birth.

A vacation bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and justice V Mohana issued a notice on the plea filed by advocate Ashwini Upadhyay. The petitioner contended that the continued use of Aadhaar for purposes beyond identity verification is contrary to Section 9 of the Aadhaar Act, 2016. The said provision states that Aadhaar is not evidence of citizenship or domicile.

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The petitioner also relied on an August 2023 notification issued by the Unique Identification Authority of India, which clarified that Aadhaar was proof of identity and not proof of citizenship, address or date of birth.

The plea claims that despite these statutory and regulatory restrictions on the scope of its use, Aadhaar is being routinely accepted as proof of age, citizenship and domicile for various other purposes, including for school admissions, property transactions, issuance of birth certificates, ration cards and driving licences.

The plea specifically challenges the use of Aadhaar as proof of date of birth and residence in Form 6, the application form for fresh voter registration. The petition states that the Aadhaar framework permits enrolment by all "residents", including foreigners who have resided in India for at least 182 days in the preceding year.

Elaborating, the petition states that Aadhaar enrolment can be facilitated through relatively simple documentation such as with rent agreements or recommendations from local elected representatives.

The plea claims that this creates opportunities for "infiltrators and illegal immigrants" to obtain Aadhaar cards and subsequently secure other identity documents, including voter identity cards. The petition alleges that such individuals are able to build a chain of official documents beginning with Aadhaar and extending to ration cards, birth certificates, domicile certificates and driving licences, enabling them to access welfare schemes and other benefits intended for Indian citizens.

This, the petition contends, results in diversion of resources, exclusion of genuine beneficiaries and undermines targeted welfare delivery. The petition specifically raises concerns about the ramifications that such easy Aadhaar enrolment could have on the sanctity of elections in India if it is used to enable new voter registrations.

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The petition argues that illegal immigrants who obtain Aadhaar and other documents are eventually able to enrol as voters, thereby compromising the integrity of elections.

The petitioner has urged the court to issue directions so that Aadhaar is used only as proof of identity in line with Section 9 of the Aadhaar Act and the UIDAI notification, and not as proof of citizenship, domicile, address or date of birth.

The plea seeks a declaration that acceptance of Aadhaar as proof of date of birth and residence in applications for new voter registration violates Section 9 of the Aadhaar Act, Section 23(4) of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, and Article 14 of the Constitution, and that such use would be void.