Linkage of Aadhar with Voter ID Card
Why is the government advocating the use of Aadhar as voter identification?
- Update Database: Through routine operations, the linking project would help the Election Commission keep an accurate and up-to-date voter database.
- Eliminate Duplication: To remove foreign workers who may have registered for numerous seats on the electoral lists or individuals who have several voter registrations in a single constituency.
- Indian voter identification
- By connecting Aadhaar to voter identity cards, the government claims it will be able to guarantee that every Indian resident has a single voter identification card.
What is the purpose of this link?
- By the end of 2021, 99.7% of Indian adults possessed an Aadhaar card.
- No other officially recognised document, including those frequently used for specialised purposes like ration cards, PAN cards, and driver’s licences, can compare to this breadth.
- dependable and inexpensive
- Because it uses biometric authentication, Aadhaar-based identification and verification are expected to be more dependable, rapid, and affordable than traditional IDs.
- Legal standing After the Election Laws (Amendment) Act of 2021 was passed by Parliament in December 2021, Section 23(4) of the Representation of the People Act of 1950 was inserted.
- In order to authenticate entries in the electoral rolls of more than one constituency or more than once in the same constituency for residents who have already registered, it stipulates that the electoral registration officer may ask people for their Aadhaar numbers.
Recently made changes:
- The government has now revealed updates to the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960.
- According to the recently passed Rule 26B, every person whose name appears on the roll may provide the registration officer with his Aadhar number.
- Government actions are uncertain: The Form 6B issued under the new Rule 26B does not appear to reflect the fact that linking the Aadhaar with the voter ID is a voluntary process, despite statements to the contrary from the government and the EC.
- The format for sending Aadhaar data to the electoral registration officer is outlined in Form 6B.
- The voter may also choose to submit any of the other stated documents or their Aadhaar number.
- Only if the voter is unable to produce their Aadhaar number because they do not have one, must they present the other listed documents.
What issues come up when voter identification and Aadhar are combined?
- Constitutional status uncertain The Supreme Court examined the constitutionality of the mandate to link Aadhaar with bank accounts in the Puttaswamy case (Right to Privacy).
- many objectives It is unclear why selecting voters using Aadhaar is preferred given that it can only be used to establish residency and not citizenship.
- Checking voter identity against this won’t remove voters who aren’t Indian citizens from the electoral rolls; it will only assist prevent voter duplication.
- biometric errors The error rates for biometric-based authentication can be estimated using a variety of techniques.
- Aadhaar-based biometric authentication experienced a 12% error rate in 2018, according to the Unique Identification Authority of India.
- Previous instances where election rolls were destroyed using Aadhaar further underscore the problem.
- A similar attempt made in 2015 in Andhra and Telangana resulted in the disenfranchisement of over 30 lakh voters before the Supreme Court halted the linking process.
- Aadhaar’s “demographic” data could be used to identify voters, violating their right to privacy and facilitating governmental surveillance. If the Aadhaar and election rolls databases are connected, this might occur.
Way Ahead:
- Legislative amendments: The administration must solicit feedback from the public and allow for a more complete legislative assessment before enacting any new legislation.
- It is vital to make sure that elected officials and common individuals alike have access to opportunities and advantages in a Parliamentary democracy like India.
- There must be a detailed discussion of the ramifications of a proposed bill in order to identify and address any problems that legislation may bring about.
- protection of privacy The government must prioritise passing the Personal Data Protection (PDP) bill before pursuing the Aadhaar-voter ID link.
- Governmental entities must abide by the PDP regime and get specific consent from an individual before sharing personal information with another government entity.
