Aadhaar to Be Linked With Voter ID Soon, Election Commission Begins Preparations
This means, the 12-digit biometric Aadhaar number will now be linked to the voter card and officials have been asked to outline the possible points related to Aadhaar linkage. Reports inform that the EC is closely examining the legal ramifications of the Aadhaar-Voter ID linkage.
New Delhi, October 1: Days after the Supreme Court upheld the constitutional validity of Aadhaar scheme, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has begun the preparations to resume the process of Aadhaar linking with voter ID cards. This means, the 12-digit biometric Aadhaar number will now be linked to the voter card and officials have been asked to outline the possible points related to Aadhaar linkage. Reports inform that the EC is closely examining the legal ramifications of linking both the documents.
The linking of the 12-digit biometric with voter ID will help in the implementation of several advanced voting mechanisms including electronic or internet-based voting schemes across India in the near future. The Supreme Court had in the last week ruled that Aadhaar Act doesn’t violate your right to privacy when you agree to share biometric data. Aadhaar Verdict: List of Services for Which UIDAI Number Is Mandatory and for Those It’s Not.
The Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) OP Rawat was quoted in reports saying that Secretariat of the Election Commission has been asked to study the Supreme Court's decisions on the emancipation of base and electoral politics.
According to a report by Economic Times, the commission will not make it mandatory for voters to link their voter card with Aadhaar. As per details by sources, EC will keep it voluntary, but certain services, such as internet voting in the future, will only be available to people who have seeded their voter ID cards with their Aadhaar number. Aadhaar Declared Constitutionally Valid by Supreme Court, But It's Not Mandatory to Link it With Bank Accounts, Mobile Numbers.
The Aadhaar-Voter ID linking project was taken up in 2015 but the process was suspended due to privacy concerns. Reports inform that before the suspension, the commission had linked Aadhaar number of nearly 38 crore voters. It must be noted that till date, there are over 75 crore registered voters in the country. The Election Commission had filed an application in the SC in 2017 to continue with Aadhaar linking in larger public interest. Rawat informed that the project had to be stopped amid privacy concerns that took the matter to court. The ECI informed that now after the of the decision, it will be resumed in accordance with the order of the court.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 01, 2018 03:07 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).