Proposal to amend People Act 1951 to link Election Card with Aadhar being examined: Law Ministry

A proposal received by the Election Commission to amend the Representation of the People Act, 1951 to enable linking of electoral data with Aadhar system is under examination, said Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad.

Speaking in Parliament on a series of questions related to the linking Aadhaar Card with the Election Card, Prasad said, "In order to ensure preparation of an error free electoral roll and to prevent duplication of entries, a proposal to amend Representation of the People Act, 1951 to enable linking of electoral data with Aadhar system has been received from the Election Commission. The matter is under examination."

The crucial aspects of linking Aadhaar and Election Card were based on questions such as -- "Whether Election Commission of India has given any suggestion to the government to connect Aadhaar Card with Election Card? Whether the government has considered all aspects like preserving the personal information and data theft on the issue of connecting Aadhaar with Voter Card?"

Some of the other questions include -- details and time by which the Election Card is likely to be connected with Aadhaar Card and steps to be taken to ensure the authenticity of voters and expenditure involved in it.

The Election Commission has also written to the Union Law Ministry, suggesting to extend the provisions under Section 126 to digital and print media as well also seek inclusion of 'print media' and 'other entities' within the ambit of Section 126 (1) (b).