A Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court will begin hearing from the last week of November petitions challenging the move to make Aadhaar card mandatory for availing various services and benefits of Government welfare schemes. While scheduling a hearing on the contentious case, the SC on Monday also pulled up the Mamata Banerjee Government and asked how a State can challenge Parliament’s mandate regarding Aadhaar card’s linkage mandatory for receiving benefits.
A Bench, comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud, fixed the last week of November for hearing the case after Attorney-General KK Venugopal told the court that the Centre is ready to argue in the matter and that no interim order is required to be passed without hearing him in the case.
Senior advocate Gopal Subramanium, appearing for one of the petitioners challenging compulsory Aadhaar linkage, told the Bench that the SC had earlier passed several orders in the Aadhaar matter and said it was “purely a voluntary act”, and there would not be any compulsion for the citizens to have the card to receive benefits of Government schemes.
Senior advocate CA Sundaram, representing Maharashtra, argued that the matter should be heard and decided as soon as possible. Recently, a nine-judge Constit-ution Bench of the apex court had held that Right to Privacy was a Fundamental Right under the Constitution. Several petitioners challenging the validity of Aadhaar had claimed it violated privacy rights.
Meanwhile, another Bench of the court issued a notice to the Centre on a petition filed by an individual challenging the proposed linking of mobile phones with Aadhaar cards. A Bench, comprising Justices AK Sikri and Ashok Bhushan, has asked the Centre to file its response within four weeks.
The Centre had on October 25 told the SC that the deadline for mandatory linking of Aadhaar to receive doles had been extended till March 31, 2018, for those who do not have the 12-digit Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) number and but are willing to enroll for it.
The Attorney-General had told the court that no coercive action would be taken against those who do not have the Aadhaar card but are willing to enroll for it. He had said such people would not be denied benefits of social schemes till March 31.
In a note to the court, the Government had said, “Those who have Aadhaar are required to seed/link their Aadhaar with SIM card, with bank account, PAN card and other schemes where Section 7 notifications have been issued.
“The Government will be open for the deadline for linking Aadhaar to various programmes being extended for another three months till March 31, 2018 for those who do not have Aadhaar.”
Some petitioners termed the linking of the UIDAI number with bank accounts and mobile numbers as “illegal and unconstitutional”.
They also objected to the CBSE’s alleged move to make Aadhaar cards mandatory for students appearing for examinations, a contention denied by the Centre.
One of the counsels representing the petitioners had earlier said that the final hearing in the main Aadhaar matter, which is pending before the apex court, was necessary as the Government “cannot compel” citizens to link their Aadhaar with either bank accounts or mobile numbers.
Meanwhile, the court pulled up the West Bengal Government saying, under the federal structure an individual can challenge a decision by the Centre in the court of law, but not a State Government.
“How can the State file such a pleaIJ In a federal structure, how can a State file a plea challenging Parliament’s mandate,” a Bench, comprising Justices AK Sikri and Ashok Bhushan, said at the outset.
“It can be challenged by individuals, but how has a State come (to court)IJ It cannot be done,” the Bench said, adding, “let Mamata Banerjee come and file a plea as an individual. We will entertain it as she will be an individual.”
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the West Bengal Government, told the Bench that the plea has been filed by the labour department of the State as subsidies under its welfare schemes have to be given by it.
Responding to his contention, the Bench said, “You satisfy us how the State has challenged it. We know it is a matter which needs consideration.” Sibal, however, insisted that the State was entitled to filing such a plea as subsidies under these schemes have to be given by the labour department.
“If it is so, tomorrow the Centre will file a petition challenging the States Act,” the Bench observed. When the Bench referred to the prayer made for relief, Sibal said, “We will amend the relief sought. We are entitled to file it”.