Aadhaar: End to Centre’s ‘surveillance tool’; It’s back to UPA version, says Congress

NEW DELHI: The Congress hailed the judgement on Aadhaar saying the Supreme Court had endorsed the erstwhile Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government’s vision of the unique identification number as a means of ensuring benefits to the poor and had firmly put an end to the Modi regime’s attempt to use it as a “mass surveillance exercise” by barring private entities from obtaining Aadhaar data.

The largest opposition party stressed that the court had for the first time held that the decisions taken by the Lok Sabha Speaker could be subject to judicial review.

Therefore, it said, it would move the court if the government, through the Speaker, classifies as money bill the bill it has to bring in Parliament to amend the Aadhaar legislation to make it conform to the court order.


“The Modi government’s surveillance tool, Section 57, is quashed, putting an end to abuse of power being exercised by the central government,” senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal said at a presser on Wednesday.

“In doing so, the SC has firmly put an end to the mass surveillance exercise being carried out under the guise of Aadhaar by the central government and the grotesque distortion of an idea conceived by the UPA.”

Sibal, flanked by Congress colleagues Ashok Gehlot and Randeep Surjewala, said the striking down of Section 57 of the Aadhaar Act was important because “the BJP government was pushing its agenda of mass convergence through the intimidation of private companies which had begun insisting on Aadhaar details”.

If necessary, he said, the Congress would move the court for clarity on destruction of data collected by private entities.