
Aadhaar Ninja
May 25, 2025 at 05:20 AM
In a recent incident in Dindigul, Tamilnadu, 29 Bangladeshi workers were found to have submitted "fake" Aadhaar cards for obtaining a job. Police is investigating about it. And District Revenue officers were instructed to collect list of inter-state migrant workers, working in such businesses. Unless and until the cards were identified to be forged, I don't think that any offence is committed by those foreign workers. Because, workers submit the documents required by the employer. It is the employer, who misbelieved that Aadhaar card as a proof of nationality. Section 9, of Aadhaar Act, 2016, explicitly declares that an Aadhaar card is not a proof of citizenship. it is mere proof of residence. Yet, due to the mass belief in false information, even government officials have become ignorant about this basic provision of law. It shows lethargy and lack of application of mind in their duty. Anyone, who is a resident of India for a specific duration, can legally obtain Aadhaar card. Even, Supreme Court had clarified the same in K S Puttaswamy v. Union of India (2018) 8 S.C.R. . So, the Aadhaar cards, which were submitted by these migrant workers, may not necessarily be fake. Mass belief in false information is also leading to breach of national security. Imagine a Jawan in the border starts believing that Aadhaar is a proof of Indian nationality. People from most of our neighbouring nation would be flooding into our borders, just by applying for Aadhaar number. So, proper awareness about Aadhaar card and its usage and security issues must be instilled in the syllabus of school education and in trainings of Government officials and awareness camps to small and medium businesses.
