Specify Deadline For Aadhaar Linking To Bank A/C & Mobile Number In SMSs To Avoid Panic: SC; Related Pleas Referred To Constitution Bench

Justice Sikri also quipped  “Initially I did not want to say because the Press is here. But I'm also receiving messages to link bank account and mobile number”.

The Supreme Court court today ordered banks and mobile service providers to specify the deadline of December 31, 2017 and February 8, 2018 for linking their bank account and mobile number with Aadhaar respectively in their messages to consumers to avoid a situation of panic and scare.

Meanwhile the bench of justice A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan refused to pass any interim order on a petitions, including the one filed by feminist researcher and activist Kalyani Menon challenging the order to link mobile numbers and bank accounts with aadhaar.

The bench tagged all the petitions with the batch of matters before the constitution bench which will commence hearing in the last week of November on whether Aadhaar violated the right to privacy.

The order to specify the deadline and last date in the messages came after senior advocates Shyam Diwan and Arvind Datar appearing for various parties said the messages where the last date was not mentioned gave an impression that the bank account or mobile number will be immediately frozen and that had created a panic situation.

Justice Sikri also quipped  “Initially I did not want to say because the Press is here. But I'm also receiving messages to link bank account and mobile number”.

AG'S SUBMISSION

Attorney General K K Venugopal submitted before the court that the issues will be dealt with by the centre through a data protection regime to be in place as mandated by the Right To Privacy Judgment and a committee is looking into the issues in right earnest. The committee will submit a report by March 31, he said

Three petitions challenge the mandatory rule to link Bank account and mobile number to Aadhaar number.

It raised issues which endanger Fundamental Rights of citizens of India, protected under Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution.

 Kalyani Menon’s petition says: “The present petition challenges Rule 2(b) of the Prevention of Money-laundering (Maintenance of Records) Second Amendment Rules, 2017 which seeks to amend Rule 9 of the Prevention of Money-laundering (Maintenance of Records) Rules, 2005 (‘PMLA Rules’) which have been issued under the Prevention of Money-laundering Act 2005 (hereinafter, “PMLAAct”)” said the petition filed through Advocate-On-Record Vipin Nair

 By virtue of the Impugned Provision, submission of an Aadhaar Number has been made mandatory for individual clients, companies, partnership firms and trusts for opening of bank accounts; maintaining existing bank accounts; making any financial transactions of and above Rs. 50,000; and crediting foreign remittance into ‘small accounts’. Existing bank account holders have been directed to furnish Aadhaar Numbers before 31stDecember 2017. Non-compliance with the Impugned Provision will render the concerned bank accounts in-operational indefinitely, subject to submission of the Aadhaar Number and the Permanent Account Number.

The petition further seeks to challenge the Circular dated 23.03.2017 ssued by the Department of Telecommunication wherein it has been made mandatory for all mobile phone holders to link their mobile phone numbers with Aadhaar.