New Delhi, July 17: Some BJP members on Thursday flagged the issue of ineligible people, including alleged infiltrators, getting Aadhaar and then accessing other official documents like Voter ID, as they said it has allowed them to claim government benefits which should be meant for Indian citizens alone, sources said.
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) headed by Congress MP K C Venugopal deliberated on the “functioning of Unique Identification Authority of India” as a few members also called for a simpler procedure to effect changes in erroneous Aadhaar details because it denies people access to their due, including government benefits.
The committee, the sources said, told the authorities to put out a circular at the earliest to inform people of the requirement to get Aadhaar and look at simplifying the process.
However, several members, mostly of the ruling alliance, suggested that people in large numbers, especially suspected infiltrators, had obtained the unique identity before the application rules were made stringent and sought a review of their bona fides, the sources added.
An MP claimed that Aadhaar has become a “backdoor” entry for people with suspect citizenship to get a raft of official documents, including voter ID and passport, as members spoke of the presence of alleged infiltrators in states like Karnataka, Bihar and Jharkhand.
The sources said some MPs were of the view that since Aadhaar is considered a residency proof and does not certify one’s Indian citizenship, authorities should reconsider if this alone should be the basis for identifying eligible beneficiaries of welfare schemes.
After all, only an Indian citizen should be entitled to government benefits, a source said, noting that scandals related to people with fake documents getting Aadhaar have often come to light.
Recommendations from locally influential persons, including a village head, would suffice for anyone seeking Aadhaar, and even those with the unique identity could sponsor applicants in many places.
Without getting into the details of the committee’s deliberations, Venugopal said Aadhaar is a “common man issue” and many questions were raised and suggestions made.
At the meeting attended by top officials of the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology and Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), a few members highlighted difficulties faced by Aadhaar cardholders in the redressal of their grievances, as at times their biometric details do not match for a variety of reasons or due to the entry of erroneous details. (PTI)
