Aadhaar card ban

The Assam government has banned the issuance of fresh Aadhaar cards to individuals over the age of 18. This is a very significant move, with Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma stating that the decision was taken to prevent illegal migrants of Bangladeshi origin from acquiring Aadhaar cards. The Chief Minister has also revealed that the government has discovered that the number of Aadhaar card applications in several districts has surpassed 100% of the actual population of those districts. Individuals belonging to the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and tea garden communities, however, are permitted to enrol until March 2027. It is common knowledge that a large number of Bangladeshi infiltrators and their prodigies have already acquired Aadhaar cards in Assam since the vital card was introduced in the state in 2018. While the Aadhaar card project was formally introduced in the country on January 28, 2009, Aadhaar cards were first introduced in Assam as a pilot project in a couple of districts in 2014, and full-scale enrolment for all citizens was officially rolled out across the state only on October 6, 2018. The Aadhaar card is not a valid proof of Indian citizenship. Both the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and the Supreme Court of India have time and again stressed that Aadhaar is strictly proof of identity and residence and not citizenship. But individuals of doubtful citizenship antecedents have acquired the card to claim that they are residents of Assam, which they would later use to claim citizenship. In Assam, a large number of illegal migrants have procured various kinds of official documents through fraudulent means, and some government officials have also issued these documents by engaging in corrupt practices. This way a large number of Bangladeshi infiltrators have also got themselves enrolled in the National Register of Citizens (NRC). Infiltrators have also exploited the Aadhaar card to access various government benefits introduced for citizens. While restrictions on the issue of Aadhaar cards, and for that matter various other documents, to persons of doubtful origin should have been in force from the very beginning, the present BJP-led government in Assam has done well by taking a bold decision on Friday. Chief Minister Dr Sarma stated that the measure aims to prevent illegal migrants from obtaining identity documents and fraudulent citizenship. As he has pointed out, the policy serves as a strict safeguard against infiltration, primarily from Bangladesh. It is also significant to note that this measure is one way of tightening verification by ensuring that Aadhaar issuance correlates with the NRC process.