'Aadhaar is BJP's tool of oppression, surveillance': Rahul Gandhi hails Supreme Court verdict on biometric scheme

Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday hailed the Supreme Court for its historic Aadhaar verdict in which it struck down some of the provisions of the Centre's flagship scheme including its linking with bank accounts, mobile phones and school admissions.

Congress President Rahul Gandhi. PTI Photo

NEW DELHI: Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday hailed the Supreme Court for its historic Aadhaar verdict in which it struck down some of the provisions of the Centre's flagship scheme including its linking with bank accounts, mobile phones and school admissions. Attacking the Narendra Modi government, Gandhi said Aadhaar, the world's largest biometric scheme conceptualised and implemented during the Congress-led UPA’s tenure, was an "instrument of empowerment" for his party while for the BJP-led NDA, it's a "tool of oppression and surveillance". The Congress chief also thanked the Supreme Court for "supporting the Congress vision and protecting" the country. "For Congress, Aadhaar was an instrument of empowerment. For the BJP, Aadhaar is a tool of oppression and surveillance. Thank you Supreme Court for supporting the Congress vision and protecting India," Gandhi said on Twitter. Other than Gandhi, Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal said: "By striking down Section 57 of the Aadhaar Act, the Supreme Court firmly put an end to the mass surveillance exercise being carried out under the guise of Aadhar by the Central Government and the grotesque distortion of an idea conceived by the UPA." "Had the government not been arrogant and allowed the democratic process to work, none of this would have happened. The result of all this is crores of people's biodata is now in private hands. This is immeasurable harm done to the polity and democracy in the country," he said. The Congress had in past alleged that the NDA government has "destroyed" of the Aadhaar scheme by implementing it "horribly". Concerns have been voiced about the massive data collection process under Aadhaar, which has information about more than a billion Indians, over fears that these could be used for identity theft and surveillance by the government.

For Congress, Aadhaar was an instrument of empowerment.

For the BJP, Aadhaar is a tool of oppression and surveillance. Thank you Supreme Court for supporting the Congress vision and protecting ????????. #AadhaarVerdict — Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) September 26, 2018

The BJP has described the Supreme Court judgement on Aadhaar as a big victory for the "pro-poor Modi government", and said the apex court has upheld the constitutional validity of the scheme and asserted that it does not violate privacy. "We see it as a big victory of the Modi government, the pro-poor Modi government. The Supreme Court has upheld the constitutional validity of Aadhaar and has also said that it does not violate privacy," Patra said. A majority verdict by Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A K Sikri and A M Khanwilkar declared the Centre's flagship Aadhaar scheme constitutionally valid but struck down some of its provisions, including its linking with bank accounts, mobile phones and school admissions. The top court said Aadhaar serves a bigger public interest. Aadhaar means unique and it is better to be unique than be the best, it said.