Why Justice Chandrachud ruled Aadhaar unconstitutional: 10 points

In a majority verdict, the Supreme Court today declared the Aadhaar scheme as constitutionally valid

The Supreme Court on Wednesday declared Aadhaar scheme as constitutionally valid in a majority verdict pronounced by Justice A K Sikri who wrote the judgement for himself, CJI and Justice A M Khanwilkar.

However, the other two judges of the five-judge bench wrote their individual judgements.

Dissenting from the majority, Justice Chandrachud observed that the Aadhaar Act in current form cannot be held constitutional.

"Bypassing the Rajya Sabha to pass the Aadhaar Act amounted to subterfuge and the law was liable to be struck down as being violative of Article 110 of the Constitution," Justice Chandrachud ruled.

Here are key issues raised and observations made by Justice Chandrachud:

1. Aadhaar Act liable to be struck down as being violative of Art 110. Rajya Sabha should not have been bypassed.

2. Aadhaar programme violates informational privacy, self-determination and data protection.

3. Aadhaar allows constructing profiles of individuals which is against right to privacy, enables potential surveillance.

4. Allowing private players to use Aadhaar will lead to profiling which could be used to ascertain political views of citizens.

5. Mobile phone has become important feature of life and its seeding with Aadhaar poses grave threat to privacy, liberty, autonomy.

6. If Aadhaar is seeded with every database then there is chance of infringement of right to privacy.

7. It is impossible to live in India without Aadhaar and it is violative of Article 14.

8. Aadhaar project has failed to remedy the flaws in its design and has led to exclusion. Denying social welfare for want of Aadhaar is violation of fundamental rights of citizens.

9. Data vulnerable to misuse by third party, private vendors, that too without consent of an individual.

10. It has been admitted by UIDAI that it stores vital data and it's violative of right to privacy.

With PTI inputs