Aadhaar deadline may be Mar 31
The Central government on Wednesday proposed extending the deadline for mandatory linking of Aadhaar with bank accounts, PAN cards and mobile phones from December 31, 2017, to March 31, 2018, but only to those who are “willing to enroll for the 12-digit unique identification number. Attorney General KK Venugopal made this submission before a Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra.
Senior advocate Shyam Divan, however, protested the government’s move to “coerce” citizens into enrolling for Aadhaar. “The manner in which Aadhaar is spreading is unconstitutional,” Divan told the bench that also comprised Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud.
Complaints have already started coming about bank accounts being wiped out, Divan said, giving an example of “the widespread misuse and fraud” involving the government’s flagship project.
“Now, even people with Aadhaar do not want to get it linked to their bank accounts and their telephone numbers,” Divan said.
Senior advocates Anand Grover, Arvind Datar and Meenakshi Arora also objected to the government’s move. “Can we say you (government) will take no coercive action till March 31,” CJI Misra asked Venugopal after taking note of the vociferous opposition. Though the top law officer gave a verbal assurance, the court asked him …read more
