The CPI(M) has urged the Centre to reverse its order to link all bank accounts and mobile telephones to Aadhaar. The party said Aadhaar will become another “instrument of oppression’ in the hands of “an authoritarian government” and will facilitate State surveillance on citizens, violating their privacy and fundamental rights.

An editorial in party mouthpiece People’s Democracy , the CPI(M) said for the past five years, petitions against Aadhaar have been pending before the Supreme Court. The court has been “lackadaisical” in addressing this vital issue, it added.

“During this period, the government has gone ahead with making Aadhaar a totalitarian and compulsory system. A five-member Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court, set up in November 2017, is now hearing the petitions. The court should give its verdict at the earliest on this matter as it is of vital concern for the people and democratic liberties in the country,” the editorial added.

The party further said an investigative report by The Tribune debunked the stand of the UIDAI and the Centre that its database cannot be breached. “That the massive database compiled would be used for private commercial interest was another serious objection (raised by the CPI(M)). Already, there have been numerous instances of Aadhaar details appearing in government websites. The Tribune investigation shows how easy it is to breach the Aadhaar security set-up,” it said.

The party also cited the instance of alleged misuse of Aadhaar biometric data in the opening of accounts with Airtel Payments Bank. “PDS rations are being given only after biometric authentication. In States like Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Telangana, where Aadhaar based biometric identification has been put in place, lakhs of families have been deprived of getting rations. This is because the fingerprint identification is not working in the machines installed at the ration shops. In many cases, the ration cards have not been seeded with Aadhaar,” it added.

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