Hyderabad: A division bench comprising Chief Justice Kalyan Jyoti Sengupta and Justice P.V. Sanjay Kumar of the AP High Court on Thursday told the Centre and the gas agencies not to insist on consumers having an Aadhaar card for supply of subsidised LPG cylinders.
The bench was disposing of a writ petition by one T.S.R. Sharma, challenging the action of the oil companies in insisting that consumers have an Aadhaar card if they want to avail of subsidised LPG cylinders.
Counsel for the petitioner contended that collecting data of citizens through biometrics amounts to intruding on the privacy of citizens and it was against the basic principles of law.
He argued that till date the Centre has not made any law mandating that Aadhaar card is compulsory to receive benefits under the subsidy scheme.
The Chief Justice asked assistant solicitor-general Ponnam Ashok Goud under which law the Centre was insisting on Aadhaar cards to extend subsidies to citizens.
Goud pointed out that the petitioner has not made either the ministry of petroleum or the ministry of planning as parties to the petitions.
Next: Aadhaar not without Centre’s fiat
Aadhaar not without Centre’s fiat
Hyderabad: Assistant solicitor-general Ponnam Ashok Goud admitted in the AP High Court that the Centre has so far not issued any notification making the Aadhaar card mandatory for the supply of LPG cylinders.
Chief Justice Kalyan Jyoti Sengupta said that in the absence of a notification or law, the oil companies have no right to insist on an Aadhaar card for supply of LPG cylinders.
It might be recalled that the Centre had last month failed to get any relief on Aadhaar card being made compulsory for availing social benefits, particularly gas cylinder subsidies, from the Supreme Court which turned down its plea to modify its interim order that no person be deprived of any schemes for want of Aadhaar.
