Aadhaar not proof of Citizenship in voter roll case: Supreme Court upholds EC stand
New Delhi: The Supreme Court has backed the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) position that Aadhaar cannot be treated as conclusive proof of citizenship, emphasising that it must be independently verified.
A bench led by Justice Surya Kant made the remarks while hearing petitions challenging the Special Summary Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar. “The EC is correct in saying Aadhaar cannot be accepted as conclusive proof of citizenship. It has to be verified,” Justice Kant told senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who appeared for the petitioners.
The court said the first question was whether the ECI had the legal power to conduct such verification. “If they don’t have the power, everything ends. But if they have the power, there can’t be a problem,” the bench observed.
Sibal argued that the verification process would lead to large-scale exclusion, including voters listed since 2003 who were now being asked to submit fresh forms. Failure to do so, he claimed, would result in deletion of names without changes in residence being verified.
According to him, 7.24 crore forms were submitted, yet about 65 lakh names were removed without proper inquiry into deaths or migration. The petitioners also alleged that the EC had not disclosed the list of excluded voters in public, sharing limited information only with booth-level agents.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan contended that the commission’s actions lacked transparency. The bench, meanwhile, said that if a voter submitted Aadhaar and ration card, the EC was duty-bound to verify the details and ensure those missing documents were duly notified.
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Separate nodal officer in all districts to prevent female foeticides in Karnataka: Minister
Belagavi (PTI): Accepting that the female foeticide has not stopped in the state, Karnataka Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao on Tuesday said that the government is taking strict measures to prevent it.
The minister said the government is appointing separate nodal officers in all districts and tightening measures to prevent foeticide, which he called a "social evil".
He also assured that the government will consider strengthening legislation to control such activities.
The minister was responding to a question by BJP MLC C T Ravi in the Legislative Council.
"Female foeticides have certainly not stopped. If you look at the sex ratio, there is a lot of difference. I accept that this is happening," Rao said.
"Foeticides are not happening under pressure; voluntarily, it is happening, for not wanting a girl child. These things are happening based on the sex determination of the foetus at some hospitals. Sex determination is illegal, but with the advancement in technology, portable ultrasound machines have been developed, which can be easily carried anywhere, and scans and tests can be done. This needs to be controlled. We will bring it to the notice of the central government," he said.
In some districts and in a few hospitals, a higher number of male child births is happening. It is found with the help of intelligence input, the minister said.
"Information is being gathered on the taluk in which the male-female ratio is worsening, what is happening in which hospital, and appropriate action is being taken to crack down on such a network, after proper evaluation."
Decoy operations have been done at seven places in the last two years, to identify those involved in illegal activities linked to female foeticides, and actions have been taken against officials and hospitals involved, he said, adding that more needs to be done on priority.
Responding to a question by Ravi about whether any stringent legislation is being brought, Rao said, the government will consider strengthening the legislation and making it stricter to control this.
"Some amendments have been made to the existing laws in the last two years....advanced technology and the internet is being used to carry out such things, also oral medicines for abortions are available over the counter.
We need to look into bringing legislation to control them. The Food and Drug Administration has issued instructions to pharmacists that the sale of such drugs should be documented."
The minister also said that measures are also being taken for the effective implementation of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PC & PNDT) Act, and awareness is being created against the identification of female foetuses and female foeticide.
