Pension is a right, not subsidy. How can you link it to Aadhaar, asks SC
UIDAI Exposed Many Bogus Pensioners: AG
Dhananjay.Mahapatra@timesgroup.com 22.03.2018
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday questioned the Centre over its decision to link Aadhaar with pension, reasoning that it is not a subsidy but an entitlement of a person for years of service rendered to the government in discharge of official duties.
Referring to the argument of petitioners that many pensioners have been denied their only subsistence in old age due to technical and physical reasons, a bench of Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra and Justices A K Sikri, A M Khanwilkar, D Y Chandrachud and Ashok Bhushan asked attorney general K K Venugopal whether the Centre was going to deny pension, a rightful entitlement, just for want of Aadhaar.
Venugopal said Aadhaar had been instrumental in eliminating many bogus pensioners drawing the post-retirement benefits for years.
Data voluntarily given from 2009 to 2016: Centre
The Centre told the Supreme Court on Wednesday that those who had voluntarily enrolled for Aadhaar during 2009-16, when there was no law mandating it, cannot claim their fundamental right to privacy has been violated because of the biometrics, reports Dhananjay Mahapatra. When a five-judge Constitution bench led by the CJI asked attorney general K K Venugopal to address the concern of petitioners, Venugopal said: “Aadhaar during that period was voluntary. No fundamental rights have been violated.” P12
Both sides cite right to life to argue their case
The Centre invoked the right to food, shelter and employment for millions of impoverished people to justify Aadhaar and counter the petitioners’ argument of violation of right to privacy. With the SC having already ruled that right to privacy is intrinsic to right to life, the top court said both the government and petitioners seek to validate their arguments by invoking the right to life, adding that it may have to employ the doctrine of proportionality to decide this conflict between two limbs of right to life. P12
SC: Can’t shut our eyes to financial exclusion charges
Justice Sikri said, “Pension is an entitlement and not a benefit under the social welfare schemes. How is it included under Section 7 of the Aadhaar Act, 2016? Pension is a return for services rendered. There are many pensioners who live with their children who are settled abroad. Can such category of pensioners be told that they would not be granted pension unless they have an Aadhaar card?”
Justice Chandrachud said, “There is another category of persons who suffer from Alzheimer’s disease and may have serious dementia. There are those old persons whose biometrics do not match with the Aadhaar data. Where do they go? Pension is a rightful entitlement and not a bounty given by the state”.
He said there are many instances where biometrics of manual labourers do not match, where in remote areas authentication fails because of lack of electricity or network connectivity, should the beneficiary be denied financial benefits? “We will appreciate if the government can come and tell us upfront that there is a serious issue of financial exclusion. The cabinet secretariat had flagged this issue. The government must explain what steps are taken to eliminate financial exclusion of legitimate beneficiaries,” Chandrachud said.
AG Venugopal said Aadhaar has been instrumental in eliminating many bogus pensioners. He said there is provision in the Aadhaar law not to deny social welfare benefits to even blind leprosy patients. The method of their enrolment is different, he added.
The AG also said pension has a subsidy component and that Aadhaar would authenticate the actual pensioner numbers. “We will know who are actual beneficiaries. If in future it is required to amend the Aadhaar law, we will do that. But, for this reason the whole project need not be condemned.” The AG said no such person or class of persons have come before the court alleging that they have been denied pension because of want of Aadhaar or their physical biometrics not matching with Aadhaar data. “Unless they come and make an issue, we will really be groping in dark to find a solution to a hypothetical problem,” he said.
The bench disagreed saying it is no argument that no person has come before the court to challenge denial of pension for want of Aadhaar or because biometrics don’t match due to physical changes in old age. “A lot of people do not have the wherewithal to come to the court, but can we shut our eyes to allegations about financial exclusion,” it asked.
CHALLENGES REMAIN
UIDAI Exposed Many Bogus Pensioners: AG
Dhananjay.Mahapatra@timesgroup.com 22.03.2018
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday questioned the Centre over its decision to link Aadhaar with pension, reasoning that it is not a subsidy but an entitlement of a person for years of service rendered to the government in discharge of official duties.
Referring to the argument of petitioners that many pensioners have been denied their only subsistence in old age due to technical and physical reasons, a bench of Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra and Justices A K Sikri, A M Khanwilkar, D Y Chandrachud and Ashok Bhushan asked attorney general K K Venugopal whether the Centre was going to deny pension, a rightful entitlement, just for want of Aadhaar.
Venugopal said Aadhaar had been instrumental in eliminating many bogus pensioners drawing the post-retirement benefits for years.
Data voluntarily given from 2009 to 2016: Centre
The Centre told the Supreme Court on Wednesday that those who had voluntarily enrolled for Aadhaar during 2009-16, when there was no law mandating it, cannot claim their fundamental right to privacy has been violated because of the biometrics, reports Dhananjay Mahapatra. When a five-judge Constitution bench led by the CJI asked attorney general K K Venugopal to address the concern of petitioners, Venugopal said: “Aadhaar during that period was voluntary. No fundamental rights have been violated.” P12
Both sides cite right to life to argue their case
The Centre invoked the right to food, shelter and employment for millions of impoverished people to justify Aadhaar and counter the petitioners’ argument of violation of right to privacy. With the SC having already ruled that right to privacy is intrinsic to right to life, the top court said both the government and petitioners seek to validate their arguments by invoking the right to life, adding that it may have to employ the doctrine of proportionality to decide this conflict between two limbs of right to life. P12
SC: Can’t shut our eyes to financial exclusion charges
Justice Sikri said, “Pension is an entitlement and not a benefit under the social welfare schemes. How is it included under Section 7 of the Aadhaar Act, 2016? Pension is a return for services rendered. There are many pensioners who live with their children who are settled abroad. Can such category of pensioners be told that they would not be granted pension unless they have an Aadhaar card?”
Justice Chandrachud said, “There is another category of persons who suffer from Alzheimer’s disease and may have serious dementia. There are those old persons whose biometrics do not match with the Aadhaar data. Where do they go? Pension is a rightful entitlement and not a bounty given by the state”.
He said there are many instances where biometrics of manual labourers do not match, where in remote areas authentication fails because of lack of electricity or network connectivity, should the beneficiary be denied financial benefits? “We will appreciate if the government can come and tell us upfront that there is a serious issue of financial exclusion. The cabinet secretariat had flagged this issue. The government must explain what steps are taken to eliminate financial exclusion of legitimate beneficiaries,” Chandrachud said.
AG Venugopal said Aadhaar has been instrumental in eliminating many bogus pensioners. He said there is provision in the Aadhaar law not to deny social welfare benefits to even blind leprosy patients. The method of their enrolment is different, he added.
The AG also said pension has a subsidy component and that Aadhaar would authenticate the actual pensioner numbers. “We will know who are actual beneficiaries. If in future it is required to amend the Aadhaar law, we will do that. But, for this reason the whole project need not be condemned.” The AG said no such person or class of persons have come before the court alleging that they have been denied pension because of want of Aadhaar or their physical biometrics not matching with Aadhaar data. “Unless they come and make an issue, we will really be groping in dark to find a solution to a hypothetical problem,” he said.
The bench disagreed saying it is no argument that no person has come before the court to challenge denial of pension for want of Aadhaar or because biometrics don’t match due to physical changes in old age. “A lot of people do not have the wherewithal to come to the court, but can we shut our eyes to allegations about financial exclusion,” it asked.
CHALLENGES REMAIN
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