Supreme Court Observes: 'Aadhar Card Alone Is Not Proof of Citizenship' in SIR Case

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu)- The Supreme Court reprimanded the political parties and said that the efforts to consider Aadhaar as a certificate of citizenship are not acceptable. The Supreme Court clarified that the Aadhaar card can be seen as an identity card and it cannot be considered for citizenship.

A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi clarified that Aadhaar can be used as an identity card, but it cannot be considered to prove citizenship alone. The bench said, "We can neither extend the status of Aadhaar beyond the Aadhaar Act nor take it beyond the decision in the Puttaswamy case." Let us tell you that Section 9 of the Aadhaar Act clearly provides that Aadhaar neither gives citizenship nor the right to residence. Also, in the Puttaswamy case of 2018, the Supreme Court had said that Aadhaar is not proof of citizenship.

In fact, after 65 lakh names were removed from the voter list of Bihar, some parties including RJD had demanded to make Aadhaar the final proof for voter registration. On this, the court asked in a strict tone, "Why so much emphasis on Aadhaar?" The Election Commission told the court that Aadhaar saturation in many districts of Bihar is more than 140 percent, which shows fake enrollment on a large scale. The central government also informed that in many states, Bangladeshi infiltrators and Rohingya refugees have fraudulently obtained Aadhaar cards. The Supreme Court advised political parties to work at the grassroots level to help real voters and get claims and objections filed through booth level agents, instead of weakening the voter list by finding shortcuts. The court's clear message is that Aadhaar is not a proof of citizenship. Fake voters will not be allowed to weaken Indian democracy.