Tested Aadhaar law on parameters fixed by 9-judge bench, says SC

The Supreme Court said Wednesday that it held the Aadhaar scheme valid after testing it on parameters fixed by the nine-judge bench which had held the Right to Privacy as a fundamental right.

A nine-judge bench had laid down the triple test which needed to be satisfied for judging the permissible limits for invasion of privacy for the validating every legislation.

It had said that privacy can be invaded to a "permissible limit" if welfare measures are backed by a law and there should be a "legitimate state interest".

The measures should pass the "test of proportionality", it had maintained.

A five judge Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra upheld the validity of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act saying that it passed the triple test envisaged in the privacy judgement.

 

It said: "The court is of the opinion that the triple test laid down in order to adjudge the reasonableness of the invasion to privacy has been made. The Aadhaar scheme is backed by the statute, that is the Aadhaar Act.

"It also serves legitimate State aim, which can be discerned from the Introduction to the Act as well as the Statement of Objects and Reasons which reflect that the aim in passing the Act was to ensure that social benefit schemes reach the deserving community."

The majority judgement said the failure to establish identity of an individual has proved to be a major "hindrance for successful implementation of those programmes as it was becoming difficult to ensure that subsidies, benefits and services reach the unintended beneficiaries in the absence of a credible system to authenticate identity of beneficiaries".

It noted that the statement of objects and reasons of the Aadhaar Act disclosed that over a period of time, the use of Aadhaar number has increased manifold and it was necessary to take measures relating to ensuring security of the information provided by the individuals while enrolling for it.