The Centre released a press release on Friday, urging citizens not to share photocopies of their Aadhaar cards because it could be misused. Two days later, the advisory was withdrawn, claiming that it could be ‘misinterpreted’
The Centre said that photocopies of the Aadhaar can be misused and then withdrew the advice. PTI
To share or not to share became the hot topic on Sunday after the government withdrew its previously released press note, urging citizens not to share photocopies of Aadhaar cards.
The initial press release by the Press Information Bureau on Friday triggered alarm on social media as screengrabs of the press release and news articles went viral, with the issue among the top 10 trending topics in India on Twitter on Sunday.
What exactly went down? What did the press releases state and why did it cause widespread panic. Let’s take a look.
Government’s Aadhaar advisory
On 27 May, the regional office of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) in Bengaluru had put out an advisory, stating that citizens should share their Aadhaar details only with entities that have a “user licence” from UIDAI.
The release read: “Unlicensed private entities like hotels or film halls are not permitted to collect or keep copies of Aadhaar cards. It is an offence under the Aadhaar Act 2016. If a private entity demands to see your Aadhaar card, or seeks a photocopy of your Aadhaar card, please verify that they have a valid User License from the UIDAI.”
The advisory added that citizens shouldn’t share photocopy of one’s Aadhaar with any organisations because it can be misused. Instead it asked people to use the masked Aadhaar alternative, which displays only the last four digits of one’s Aadhaar number.
The advisory set Twitter on fire, with many users sharing instances of how they had used their Aadhaar in numerous instances.