JOIN USDH Deciphers | The controversy around linking Aadhaar with voter ID
Parliament has passed the Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021, which provides a legal framework for linking electoral roll data with Aadhaar. The legislation has been strongly criticised by the Opposition and civil society over privacy and voter data manipulation concerns. In its defence, the government says the law will weed out voter duplications and help first-time voters enrol in the electoral roll four times a year. Here's a deeper look at the matter:
What does the bill say?
The Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021, amends the Representation of the People Act, 1950, and the Representation of the People Act, 1951. It creates a legal framework for linking electoral roll data with Aadhaar. It designates January 1, April 1, July 1 and October 1 as qualifying dates for the enrolment of 18-year-olds as voters. The bill also amends Section 20 of the RP Act, 1950, and Section 60 of the RP Act, 1951, for replacing the word "wife" with the word "spouse", thus making the statutes gender-neutral.
Why is it controversial?
The bill is controversial primarily because it amends Section 23 of the RP Act, 1950, allowing the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) to ask any voter applicant or existing voter to give their Aadhaar. This is to weed out the registration of the same person as a voter in more than one constituency or more than once in the same constituency. The legislation, however, does not bar anyone from registering herself or himself as a voter or remove them from the electoral roll if they do not or could not provide the Aadhaar. The Opposition argued that the law is not in sync with the Supreme Court's 2018 order and that linking the electoral roll with Aadhaar will infringe upon the right to privacy and violate Article 21 of the Constitution. Aadhaar is proof of residence and not proof of citizenship while only citizens are allowed to vote, it said.
What's the government's argument?
The government argues that the Opposition is misinterpreting the Supreme Court order on Aadhaar and that the Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021, does not make it mandatory for citizens to link Aadhaar with voter ID.
What did the SC say on Aadhaar?
On September 26, 2018, the Supreme Court held that Aadhaar could be made mandatory for accessing any subsidy, benefit or service paid for by the Consolidated Fund of India. The judgement also upheld the constitutionality of the Aadhaar Act, 2016. It also ruled that the mandatory Aadhaar-PAN linking is legal since it neither violates the right to privacy nor is discriminatory. But the court ruled as unconstitutional the linking of mobile phone numbers with Aadhaar.
What does the election commission say?
The election commission favours linking Aadhaar with voter ID, saying that will help curb multiple enrolments. In 2015, the commission launched the National Electoral Law Purification and Authentication Programme to link Aadhaar with the voter ID but suspended it after the Supreme Court ordered on August 11, 2015, that using Aadhaar for welfare schemes would be optional and no personal information of Aadhaar holders should be shared by any authority. After the court's September 2018 judgement, the commission in August 2019 asked the government to amend the election laws to empower the EROs to seek the Aadhaar of existing and new voters.
What do the critics say?
The main problem with Aadhaar-voter ID linking, critics say, is that it could lead to mass deletion of names from the electoral roll. The fears are not unfounded. In 2018, a large number of names were deleted from the electoral roll as a result of a voluntary Aadhaar-voter ID linking programme in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Then there are privacy concerns as the voter data could be manipulated or shared with unauthorised entities. This may lead to voter profiling, they say.