AADHAAR is optional not mandatory

Henna Vaiphei *

Aadhaar card is an identification card issued by Unique Identification Authority of India. It is simply a card to identify the holder identity in order to avoid fraud.

Indeed, getting Aadhaar card is optional and not compulsory. But some agencies and departments of government both the centre and states, make it mandatory by insisting it for availing various beneficiary schemes or for the arrangement of salary, provident fund disbursals, promotion, scholarship, opening bank account, marriages and property registrations.

Thus, Aadhaar card is being made a controversial issue in the entire states of India. In this matter, the Supreme Court of India, on 23rd September 2013, issued an order stating that Adhaar card is not mandatory and no person shall suffer for not getting the card.

The court further said that Aadhaar will not be mandatory and a person, who does not have Aadhaar, should not suffer in availing of government benefits and services like gas connections, vehicle registration, scholarships, marriage registration and provident fund etc.

Against the apex court order, Aadhaar card is still insisted upon some citizens at different places including Manipur by the agencies of the states and victimised many people especially the illiterates and Christian minorities irrationally.

To ensure justice to the petitioners, who approached law courts for being forced to get the card by some government agencies, the Supreme Court warned both the Centre and State governments in a daily national paper Times Nation, 17th March 2015 under the head line "Sc to govts: Will act if Aadhaar made must" and the same is reproduced herewith.

"The Supreme Court on Monday (16th March 2015) warned the Centre and state governments against denying civil rights and social welfare benefits for not having an Aadhaar card and threatened to take action against the authorities concerned if they made it mandatory. The three-judge bench of Justices J.Chelameswar, Sa Bobde and C.Nagappan took strong exception to the practice of some government departments which made Aadhaar mandatory despite its order restraining them to do so. It asked the petitioners challenging the constitutional validity of the card, to bring to its notice any such practice resorted to by any government authority".

Again, in 31st July 2015, Additional Solicitor General Pinky Anand clarified the stand of Centre on Aadhaar in a daily paper, Sangai National, when Mathew Thomas filed an application to the apex court seeking initiation of contempt proceedings against the centre and others including RBI and the Election Commission.

According to his statement, the Centre has conveyed to the states and concerned authorities not to make Aadhaar mandatory for availing various schemes. Further, that persons, having Aadhaar cards, were being asked to provide it to authorities and but this was optional.

Though Aadhaar is not mandatory, there are various government agencies and departments in Manipur, insisting Aadhaar as mandatory document for applying any government schemes and facilities including service mater and caused unnecessary burden to the public particularly to some section of Christian minorities who assumed getting Aadhaar is against the ethics of Christianity and the illiterates who are not aware, even how and where to get the card.

In spite of Aadhaar not being mandatory, very recently, some colleges and schools from Imphal, Churachandpur and Sadar hills denied students applying scholarship for not getting Aadhaar card and make them forfeit their scholarship for the year 2016 as the last date for form submission was already expired.

It is also learnt that some students are not allowed opening bank accounts by banks operating both in the hills and valley. It is really humiliating for the state government of Manipur what its departments and agencies had done for making Aadhaar mandatory of their own against the Centre and Supreme Court order.

The state government of Manipur and its agencies must realise that Aadhaar is not meant for making the people suffer illegally against the law of the country.

So, the government should take up necessary action against the concerned authorities who acted against the directions of the Centre and order of the Supreme Court, the apex court of India and make sure that no one suffers for not getting Aadhaar, at the earliest time, failing which the court may follow its own course to deal with such agencies, departments and institutions who disregarded its order.