It has been mathematically proved that the unique identification number need not be unique at all. Besides, the way biometric data of the country’s huge population are collected, handled and stored gives rise to serious concerns about the citizen’s privacy and the country’s security.
THE CONTROVERSY ABOUT AADHAAR, OR unique identification number, acquires a sinister overtone when one realises that no other country in the world except Pakistan has done a similar codification exercise for its citizens. The pursuit of the biometric Aadhaar project by the Narendra Modi government, in violation of the Supreme Court’s October 15, 2015, order, defies logic. The court had stated categorically that the use of the unique identification number should not be made mandatory and restricted the use of Aadhaar to six schemes (the public distribution system, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, the National Social Assistance Programme, the Prime Minister Jan Dhan Yojana, the Employees Provident Fund Office and liquefied petroleum gas distribution). In these schemes, too, the order said, enrolment for Aadhaar was voluntary.
But the Centre has made Aadhaar mandatory for a clutch of financial services/transactions, such as obtaining or retaining PAN (permanent account number) cards, filing of income tax returns and obtaining a SIM card or a driving licence, giving rise to serious concerns. Does it not constitute a breach of the right to privacy? What are the safeguards for data security? In case of misuse of information, which authority can be approached for redress? Are the government’s intentions genuine?
This story is from the April 28, 2017 edition of FRONTLINE.
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This story is from the April 28, 2017 edition of FRONTLINE.
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