The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have accused each other of manipulating electoral rolls before the Delhi Assembly elections. This has reignited the debate about linking voter IDs/Election Photo Identity Card (EPIC) with respective Aadhaar numbers.

What is the history of the proposal?

• The Election Commission (EC) had in February 2015 launched the National Electoral Rolls Purification and Authentication Program (NERPAP).
• This was to address the issue of duplicate entries in the electoral roll and to remove such entries. In order to achieve this, the EC began authenticating EPIC data by linking it with the Aadhaar database. It had linked more than 300 million voters in a span of three months.
• However, the Supreme Court in an interim order, in August 2015, held that the mandatory use of Aadhaar should only be for welfare schemes and PAN linking. Following this order, the NERPAP exercise was discontinued.
• After the Supreme Court’s final order in Puttaswamy in September 2018, that upheld the constitutional validity of the Aadhaar Act, the EC sought amendments to the Representation of the People Act, 1950 (RP Act, 1950).
• The Parliament amended the RP Act, 1950 and The Registration of Electors Rules, 1960 in December 2021 to enable the linking of EPIC with Aadhaar.
• It provided the format in which Aadhaar information may be submitted to the electoral registration officer by a new voter at the time of fresh registration (Form 6: to establish identity) or an existing voter already included in the electoral roll (Form 6B: for the purpose of authentication).
• Any other listed document may be submitted only if the voter is unable to furnish their Aadhaar number because they do not have one.
• However, in order to keep these amendments voluntary in nature, the word ‘may’ have been used in the amendments. Further, the amendment also specifies that no application for inclusion of name in the electoral roll shall be denied and no entries shall be deleted due to the inability of an individual to furnish or intimate the Aadhaar number due to ‘sufficient cause.’
• Such individuals may furnish alternate documents like PAN card, Driving Licence, Passport, Bank passbook etc.
• While the above amendments were challenged in the Supreme Court, the EC in September 2023 informed the court that submission of the Aadhaar number is not mandatory.
• It added that it is looking into issuing appropriate clarificatory changes in the forms introduced for this purpose. However, it may be noted that Form 6 and 6B have not been amended till date and they continue to seek the same details as before from the applicants.
• The forms require the voters to declare that they do not have an Aadhar number to avoid providing the same.

What are the pros and cons?

EPIC linkage with the respective Aadhaar number would definitely help in weeding out duplicate entries; that is essential. At present, more than 650 million Aadhaar numbers have already been uploaded in the process of finalising the electoral rolls. However, there are some concerns about this exercise that need to be considered.

Firstly, the errors in the Aadhaar database, however miniscule, may result in wrongful rejection or deletion of entries from the electoral roll.

Secondly, Aadhaar is only a proof of residence and not a proof of citizenship. Thus, it may not help in removing voters who are not citizens from the electoral roll. It would require a separate effort from the EC.

Finally, while the linkage is to happen at the back end and a mere mention of the Aadhaar number on the EPIC/electoral roll may not by itself be a violation of right to privacy, it may still result in misuse as the electoral rolls are widely circulated amongst political parties.

What can be the way forward?

• The right to vote is a constitutional right and declared so by the Supreme Court in various cases.
• It is part of the basic structure of free and fair elections and cannot be constricted through legislative action. Citizens are the most important stakeholders in a democracy and any electoral process should gain their confidence.
• There must be wide publicity about the benefits of linking EPIC and Aadhaar to clean up the electoral roll of duplicate entries, which in turn strengthens the electoral process. Any misplaced concern amongst voters about the secrecy of their vote being compromised because of this linking should be assuaged.

About Puttaswamy Case (2018):

The Puttaswamy Case (2018), officially known as Justice K.S. Puttaswamy (Retd.) v. Union of India, is a landmark judgment in Indian constitutional law. Here are the concise key points:

Context: The case challenged the constitutional validity of the Aadhaar Act, 2016, primarily on grounds of privacy and surveillance concerns.

Privacy as a Fundamental Right: It was preceded by the Puttaswamy judgment (2017), where the Supreme Court declared privacy a fundamental right under Article 21.

Key Issues:

• Whether Aadhaar violated the right to privacy.
• Legitimacy of Aadhaar as mandatory for welfare schemes, bank accounts, and mobile connections.
• Legislative competence in passing the Aadhaar Act as a Money Bill.

Judgment:

Aadhaar Validity: Upheld Aadhaar’s constitutional validity for targeted welfare schemes and direct benefit transfers (DBTs).

Restrictions: Aadhaar cannot be mandatory for:

1. Mobile connections.
2. Bank accounts.
3. Admission in educational institutions.

Money Bill Issue: Controversially upheld the Aadhaar Act’s classification as a Money Bill.

आधार से वोटर आईडी लिंक करने पर बहस और पुट्टस्वामी केस (2018):

आधार और वोटर आईडी लिंकिंग का इतिहास:

2015:

चुनाव आयोग (EC) ने नेशनल इलेक्टोरल रोल्स प्यूरीफिकेशन एंड ऑथेंटिकेशन प्रोग्राम (NERPAP) शुरू किया।

इसका उद्देश्य वोटर लिस्ट में डुप्लिकेट एंट्री को हटाना और डेटा को आधार से लिंक करना था।

तीन महीने में 30 करोड़ वोटर्स का डेटा लिंक किया गया।

2015 का सुप्रीम कोर्ट आदेश:

• कोर्ट ने आधार का उपयोग केवल कल्याणकारी योजनाओं और PAN लिंकिंग के लिए सीमित किया।
• इसके बाद NERPAP को रोक दिया गया।

पुट्टस्वामी केस (2018):

• सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने आधार अधिनियम की संवैधानिक वैधता को बरकरार रखा।
• इसके बाद EC ने जन प्रतिनिधित्व अधिनियम, 1950 (RP Act, 1950) में संशोधन की मांग की।

2021 संशोधन:

• संसद ने RP Act, 1950 और रजिस्ट्रेशन ऑफ इलेक्टर्स रूल्स, 1960 में संशोधन किया।
• नए और मौजूदा वोटर्स को आधार या वैकल्पिक दस्तावेज (जैसे PAN, ड्राइविंग लाइसेंस) प्रदान करने की अनुमति दी गई।

2023 स्थिति:

• सुप्रीम कोर्ट को EC ने सूचित किया कि आधार लिंकिंग अनिवार्य नहीं है।
• हालांकि, फार्म 6 और 6B अब भी आधार जानकारी मांगते हैं।

आधार-EPIC लिंकिंग के फायदे और नुकसान:

फायदे:

• डुप्लिकेट वोटर एंट्री को हटाने में मदद।
• वोटर लिस्ट को अधिक सटीक और पारदर्शी बनाना।

नुकसान:

1. आधार डेटा में त्रुटियां: गलत तरीके से एंट्री रिजेक्ट या डिलीट हो सकती है।
2. नागरिकता का सबूत नहीं: आधार केवल निवास का प्रमाण है, नागरिकता का नहीं।
3. गोपनीयता का मुद्दा: वोटर सूची का दुरुपयोग राजनीतिक दलों द्वारा हो सकता है।

पुट्टस्वामी केस (2018) के मुख्य बिंदु:

संदर्भ:

• आधार अधिनियम, 2016 की संवैधानिक वैधता को चुनौती दी गई।
• गोपनीयता और निगरानी से संबंधित मुद्दे उठाए गए।

सुप्रीम कोर्ट का फैसला:

आधार वैधता: DBTs और कल्याणकारी योजनाओं के लिए आधार को वैध ठहराया।

सीमाएं: आधार को अनिवार्य नहीं बनाया जा सकता:

• मोबाइल कनेक्शन।
• बैंक खाते।
• शैक्षणिक संस्थानों में प्रवेश।

मनी बिल का मुद्दा: आधार अधिनियम को मनी बिल के रूप में वर्गीकृत करने को विवादास्पद रूप से वैध ठहराया।

आगे की राह:

• चुनाव में विश्वास: वोटिंग प्रक्रिया में लोगों का विश्वास बनाए रखना प्राथमिकता होनी चाहिए।
• जागरूकता अभियान: EPIC-आधार लिंकिंग के फायदों पर प्रचार-प्रसार।
• डेटा सुरक्षा: वोटर गोपनीयता की सुरक्षा सुनिश्चित करनी होगी।