When your bank or telecom operator starts pestering you with phone calls and messages, do you really have to give in and link your Aadhaar card? The dilemma and chaos continue to linger around the corner and the question on whether furnishing your Aadhaar is mandatory or not continues to be a cliff-hanger for many.
While the Supreme Court is yet to give its final verdict on making the Aadhaar mandatory, the frequent and threatening nature of SMS and calls from telecom operators for the re-verification process of Aadhaar cards has got accelerated from last month, and is now turning out to be an unnerving affair for one and all.
As for Nandana Prem, who is currently doing her bachelor’s degree in English literature, the idea of linking Aadhaar in itself is nothing less than scary.
“First, it questions one’s Right to Privacy. I can’t comprehend the necessity to link my very personal as well crucial data to Aadhaar where my data can easily be accessed by a third party, in this case, a private firm or a telecom company. The real politics behind such a practice is something to ponder up on. But most of all, having my mobile or bank details linked to Aadhaar sounds really scary,’’ she said. The prospect of linking Aadhaar to mobile phones is now turning out to be the bane of every average Indian and a lack of legal awareness drives many to simply give in and submit their Aadhaar details.
“I kept on getting calls and messages from the mobile company and I used to get so pissed off. Finally, I linked my Aadhaar as I thought I was bound to do that legally. After all, I thought it’s just a two minute affair, and I can easily do it online and do away with these pestering calls and headaches once and for all, said Arpit Bansal who is working as key accounts manager at a multinational firm. Even as ‘Project Aadhaar’ has been an affair of coercion, compulsion and rampant illegality from the beginning, the question is how can this darkness be dispelled?
According to Advocate Akhila Kumari, linking Aadhaar is a matter of violation of personal liberty and trespassing one’s privacy. “When banks and mobile companies are pushing you, you have all the right to say a big, loud NO back to them. It is clearly illegal on the part of mobile companies to force you to link your Aadhaar while the case is still under the consideration of the Supreme Court. The basic problem is that the layman is not legally aware of these facts and they link their Aadhaar to avoid any sort of problems in the future,’’ said Advocate Akhila.
