Aadhar Mandatory for PAN, Not for Bank A/C: Supreme CourtTop Stories

September 27, 2018 10:06
Aadhar Mandatory for PAN, Not for Bank A/C: Supreme Court

(Image source from: Hindustan Times)

The Supreme Court on Wednesday, upheld the validity of the Aadhar scheme, allowing linking of Aadhaar with Permanent Account Number (PAN), which is mandatory for the filing of income tax return (ITR).

In a 4:1 verdict, Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, who headed a five-judge Constitution Bench, however, ruled that it is not mandatory to link bank accounts with Aadhaar or 12-digit Unique Identity Number, issued by the Unique Identification Authority of India.

The top court said benefits under the Aadhaar project should be in the nature of welfare schemes and it cannot be made mandatory for everything from banking to telecom services.

Key highlights on verdict:

* The Supreme Court asked the Centre to bring a tough law for data protection as soon as possible.
* Aadhaar is mandatory for linking of PAN card, said the apex court.
* No person will be denied benefits under social welfare scheme because of failure of authentication through Aadhaar.
* Aadhaar cannot be made mandatory for bank account opening and for getting mobile connections.
* The SC said that Aadhaar must not be made mandatory for school admission and the administration cannot make it compulsory.
* The SC directed the government to guarantee that illegal migrants are not issued Aadhaar to acquire benefits of social welfare schemes.
* Private companies can't ask for Aadhaar, said the top court.

By Sowmya Sangam

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