Aadhaar-Linking Deadline Extension

Why in news?

The Supreme Court has indefinitely extended the deadline for Aadhaar linking.

What is the SC's order?

• Earlier the SC extended the December 31, 2017 deadline for Aadhaar linking to March 31, 2018.
• It applied to linking Aadhaar with mobile phones, tatkal passports and for opening bank accounts.
• The SC has now indefinitely extended that deadline, till the Court pronounces its final verdict on the validity of the Aadhaar scheme.
• The court called for a sense of certainty that citizens would not be harmed or their services would not be curtailed in the meantime.

What are the Exceptions?

• The Court did not relax the March 31 deadline for linking Aadhaar to services under Section 7 of the Aadhaar Act.

• Besides, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has made announcements despite deadline extension by the SC.
• As per this, Aadhaar requirement for opening new bank accounts and applying for Tatkal passports under the relevant laws will continue. 

What is the need for extension?

• Privacy - The Aadhaar linking scheme is said to be a coercive step and violation of the ordinary citizen's fundamental right to privacy.
• The privacy concern is significant because India does not have a data protection regime to prevent or punish personal data leakage.
• Notably, the SC recently upheld privacy as a fundamental right and intertwined it with basic human dignity and right to life.
• In this context, the Bench's verdict, at the earliest, on whether Aadhaar is constitutional or not would be significant.
• Uncertainty - The court expressed dissatisfaction at passing numerous interim orders extending the deadline.
• The government, on the other hand, has issued various 'piecemeal' notifications and legislations to link one service or the other.
• These have led to a sense of uncertainty and confusion among the citizens and consumers.

What is the case with Section 7?

• Section 7 of the Aadhaar Act allows governments to insist on Aadhaar for certain purposes.
• It applies to establishing the identity of an individual as a condition for availing welfare schemes.
• These may include subsidy, benefit or service which draws expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India.
• Section 7 benefits are excluded from Aadhaar extension because it is statutorily protected by the Aadhaar Act itself.
• Whereas the other linkages, like with PAN, mobile phones, etc., are based on other statutes or even executive notifications.

What will the possible impact be?

• The Court order may impact the welfare scheme beneficiaries, who typically hail from economically disadvantaged sections.
• The beneficiaries of 139 welfare schemes are at risk of falling off the coverage if they don’t furnish Aadhaar proof by March end.
• The services include the significant ones like the mid-day meal scheme for school children and food subsidies.
• It sends out a wrong message that privacy may not be a priority concern for the welfare scheme beneficiaries.

Source: The Hindu, Business Line