A group of students and activists staged a silent protest on Friday opposing the 12-digit Aadhaar number as Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) chairman Nandan Nilekani delivered a lecture on Aadhaar’s role in the transformation of public service delivery. Students from the Indian Institute of Science and activists held placards and banners saying ‘Beware, Big Brother is watching you’ and ‘Secure electronic archive is a myth’ at the JRD Tata Auditorium of the National Institute of Advanced Studies.
The protesters also distributed hand-outs and newspaper articles opposing the Aadhaar number. A few protesters questioned Nilekani on the necessity of introducing the 12-digit number during the question and answer session which followed his hour-long lecture.
The protesters argued that Aadhaar was a violation of privacy and civil liberties of the people and it could be used for profiling individuals, especially from the minority community.
“During and after the 2002 Gujarat riots, Muslims were handpicked by the rioters and executed based on the data collected from the state identity card. The same thing could happen if Narendra Modi becomes the prime minister. Fundamentalists will use Aadhaar to identify minorities and kill them,” said Rajesh, a IISc student.
The protesters questioned Nilekani’s claim that Aadhaar was voluntary.
“A big myth is being propagated that Aadhaar is voluntary. UIDAI’s concept note stresses that enrollment will not be mandated. But there is a catch: benefits and services that are linked to the UID will ensure demand for the number,” said a protester.
They wondered whether the bio-metric technology adopted by UIDAI is capable of the task of de-duplication. The UIDAI has admitted that retaining biometric efficiency for a database of more than one billion people has not been adequately analysed and that the problem of fingerprint quality in India has not been studied in depth.
Replying to the allegations made on Aadhaar number, Nilekani said that in every country whenever there is an issue of national security, there is provision to access identity. In India, it would be no different.
“The government is thinking of providing national portability and looking at inclusive growth. In turn, it’s an opportunity for people to open bank accounts, have micro ATMs and mobile phones through the Aadhaar,” he said.
If Aadhaar number is made equal to the KYC (know-your-customer) for opening bank accounts, it would lead the way for financial inclusion. According to a survey, more than 80% of the population especially in the rural areas said that they wanted a bank account, he said.
