Stronger Aadhaar law needed: Rajiv Kumar, VC, Niti Aayog

NEW DELHI: Niti Aayog vice-chairman Rajiv Kumar on Wednesday said that the law underlining Aadhaar will have to be strengthened in the wake of the Supreme Court upholding the right to privacy as a fundamental right.

“Article 21 has been interpreted again. The law underlining Aadhaar will have to be strengthened,” he said at the conclave on financial inclusion organised by the United Nations. The Supreme Court, on August 24, declared right to privacy as a fundamental right guaranteed by Constitution, a ruling that could have a bearing on the case related to Aadhaar that has been made mandatory in various services.

Aadhaar will thus have to stand the test of constitutionality as the Supreme Court's decision on the legislation still pending. Following this, the government will have to prove Aadhaar can restrain right to privacy on the grounds of dissemination of social benefits or national security.

The Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and other Subsidies, benefits and services) Act, 2016, which aims to provide legal backing to the Aadhaar unique identification number project, was passed in 2016 by the Parliament.

Kumar said mistrust in some minds, over protection and usage of Aadhaar data, at the core of the issue. “We, in the government, need to work on it (removing mistrust) and try and do away with it to ensure we all are at the same page, in the same direction and for the same cause,” he said.

The government has said that it aims to achieve financial inclusion with the interplay of over a billion Aadhaar number, over a billion bank accounts and mobile phones (JAM trinity).

Kumar said financial inclusion has been around for a long time, but till current government took charge in 2014, 70% of our population was unbanked. “Financial inclusion will help in increasing household savings,” Kumar said, adding that a digital push and financial inclusion are required by India at the frontiers of technology.