Retired judge who opposed Aadhaar welcomes verdict
BENGALURU: Retired Karnataka high court judge KS Puttaswamy, 92, who challenged the validity of the Aadhaar Act, welcomed the Supreme Court’s verdict on Wednesday, upholding the constitutionality of Aadhaar, and said it appears to be fair and reasonable.
Puttaswamy’s name is already enshrined in Constitutional law. A constitutional case, related to an individual’s fundamental right to privacy stemmed from his 2012 Aadhaar case, and in 2017, the Supreme Court, ruling in the Puttaswamy vs Union of India case, upheld privacy as a fundamental right of all Indians. Many experts said that seminal ruling on privacy, made it clear that Section 377 could not be defended; and the apex court recently wrote down that section.
Addressing the press at his residence in Bengaluru, the nonagenarian, who, in 2012 challenged the decision to make Aadhaar enrolment mandatory for all citizens — it was the first challenge to Aadhaar — said he is yet to read the entire judgment.
“I have not read the full judgement. But from what has appeared on TV... My own view is the Aadhaar Act appears to be necessary particularly in cracking down on financial criminals. But for ordinary citizens or state it is not of much benefit,” Puttaswamy said.
“On the whole, the judgment is fair and reasonable. We can’t say that it suffers from any serious lapses that are found under the Constitution, particularly Article 19, which guarantees certain rights to individuals,” he said.
Puttaswamy said mandatory clause of Aadhaar for filing income tax is justified. “Those who file returns earn well and they have to adhere to this provision,” he said.