Aadhaar remains valid but SC strikes down some sections to boost privacy

Private entities cannot demand Aadhaar data to authenticate identity. Individuals must be allowed to file complaints against the use of their data. Information can be accessed for matters of national security only when a judicial officer such as a sitting High Court judge has sanctioned it.

These were the highlights in a series of landmark rulings by India’s Supreme Court as it ruled against the use of an Aadhaar number for opening bank accounts, mobile connections and school admissions, calling access to the national identity database by private companies wishing to authenticate identities “unconstitutional”.

Though the court upheld the overall validity of the government’s Unique Identification (UID) programme, and the linking of Aadhaar to permanent account number (PAN) and welfare schemes, it prohibited many organisations and services--such as banks, insurance firms and mobile phone companies--from demanding Aadhaar data.