Aadhaar no longer mandatory for Odisha's portal for returnees

BHUBANESWAR: Following a notice from the High Court, the Odisha government on Thursday dropped Aadhaar as mandatory proof for anyone wanting to return to the state.
A division bench of Chief Justice Mohammad Rafiq and Justice CR Dash was hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Puri-based labour activist Mahendra Kumar Parida. The PIL alleged that the government’s decision to seek Aadhaar numbers, as the sole and mandatory proof to validate registrations on its portals for returning migrants and others, was arbitrary and illegal.

Argued by advocate Ishwar Mohanty, it claimed this was a violation of Section 7 of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other. Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016 which allows the use of the unique identity number for benefit of any subsidy or service incurred from the consolidated fund of India. In the absence of an Aadhaar card, an alternate identification should be allowed.

Registration of migrant workers didn't qualify for Aadhaar to be used in this manner - as the sole identity proof. Mandating it for people wanting to return home during this lockdown and thereby limiting a citizen's right to move freely was also violative of Article 14 of the Constitution, argued the PIL, a copy of which ET has seen. It sought other documents and a certificate from the respective sarpanch to be allowed as proof, as many failed to register for the lack of an Aadhaar number.

The state government has moved quickly to allow 19 other identity proofs, mostly with a photo attached, including arms licence, voter ID, passport, PAN card, driving licence, a domicile certificate, kissan pension card, post office passbook, bank passbook. A certificate of address issued by any MLA, MP or gazetted officer, as well as a certificate from the sarpanch of the returnees gram panchayat will now be enough to register on the government portal.