Lok Sabha rejects Rajya Sabha amendments, passes Aadhaar bill

The Lok Sabha on Wednesday rejected all the five amendments to the Aadhaar bill recommended by the Rajya Sabha and passed the bill by voice vote.

The Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Bill, 2016 was passed after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley sought to allay apprehensions of the Opposition concerning the bill.

The Congress and other opposition parties had made a strong pitch against the overall nature of the bill in the Rajya Sabha.

The bill was returned to the Lok Sabha with five amendments. The ruling NDA is in minority in the upper house.

Speaking in the Lok Sabha after CPI-M member Mohammad Salim referred to the amendments approved by the upper house, Jaitley said some of the amendments related to provisions of the bill were brought by the UPA government.

He said one of the amendments sought to replace the words "national security" with "public safety and public emergency" and added that these phrases had not been defined in the Constitution.

"These are undefined phrases (in the Constitution)," Jaitley said.

"Though I consider the wisdom of the upper house but I reject their amendments," he added.

Since it was introduced as a money bill by the government, the Aadhaar bill has now been passed by parliament.

As per constitutional provisions, the Rajya Sabha has limited powers with respect to money bills.

According to legislative functions of the Rajya Sabha: "A Money Bill after having been passed by the Lok Sabha, and sent to Rajya Sabha for its recommendations, has to be returned to Lok Sabha by the Rajya Sabha, with in a period of 14 days from the date of its receipt, with or without recommendations."

"If the Lok Sabha does not accept any of the recommendations of the Rajya Sabha, the Money Bill is deemed to have been passed by both Houses in the form in which it was passed by the Lok Sabha without any of the amendments recommended by the Rajya Sabha."