Aadhaar not mandatory for economically weaker students' admission, says Delhi HC
PTC News Desk: Delhi High Court has refused to interfere with an order suspending the enforcement of the city government's decision that a child's Aadhaar card be mandatory for admission to a private unaided recognized school under any of the three categories of economically weaker section (EWS), disadvantaged group (DG), or children with special needs (CWSN).
A bench led by Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma rejected an appeal filed by the Delhi government against an interim ruling issued by a single-judge bench, stating that the requirement appears to be in contradiction with constitutional provisions pertaining to privacy.
"The issue of obtaining sensitive personal details of a child, as observed in the K S Puttaswamy case (by the Supreme Court), would have the potential of infringing their right to privacy under Article 21 of the Constitution of India," the bench said last week.
It was observed that the Supreme Court has stated that making Aadhaar submission mandatory would violate the fundamental rights safeguarded by Article 21 and that any such constraint cannot be constitutionally justified.
"It would thus suffice to state that the impugned circulars are prima facie in conflict with the constitutional provisions, the effect whereof has rightly been stayed by the learned single judge," the court said.
The order was passed in response to a plea submitted by a man who claimed that his five-year-old son was unable to participate in the computerised lottery scheme for school allocation for the 2023 academic year because he did not have an Aadhar card.
The Delhi government enforced the requirement of an Aadhaar card or number for admission to private unaided recognized schools in the national capital under the EWS, DG, and CWSN categories in circulars issued on July 12, 2022 and February 2, 2023.
The court stated that the single judge has yet to take a final view on the petition and that the appeal is without merit.
"Dismissed, along with other pending applications," the court said.
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- With inputs from agencies
