The Delhi High Court recently held that in exceptional circumstances, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) can be directed to disclose the Aadhaar information of a person to Court without granting him/her a prior hearing (Vandana v State through PS Amar Colony & Anr).
A Division Bench of Justices Prathiba M Singh and Amit Sharma said such data can be provided to the Court in a sealed cover.
The Court said even though the Supreme Court’s judgement in KS Puttuswamy holds that Aadhaar information is private and personal information of an individual and the needs to be maintained with confidentiality and secrecy, there are exceptions to this.
A Habeas Corpus petition by a daughter seeking production of her missing mother is one such exception, the Court stated.
"In terms of the decision in KS Puttuswamy, it is a settled proposition that the data provided to the UIDAI while making an Aadhar card is private and personal information of an individual. The same needs to be maintained with confidentiality and secrecy should be ensured by the UIDAI. Under normal circumstances the data given by any individual for preparing an Aadhar card would be the personal data of the said individual and would be governed by the law of privacy. However, sometimes there are exceptions to this i.e., for example as in the present petition where the daughter is seeking a writ of habeas corpus for production of her mother," the Court stated.
The Court made the observations while dealing with a Habeas Corpus petition filed by a woman named Vandana seeking directions to Delhi Police to trace her mother missing since May 2019.
It was informed that though the woman has been missing for over five years, her Aadhaar data has been updated and it mentions her most recent address and mobile number.
Delhi Police handed over a status report to the Court stating that there was no trace of the petitioner’s mother.
After considering the case, the Bench said that the only available information now was the updated Aaadhar card details and the Court would not be in a position to hear the Aadhaar holder since she is missing.
“The mother of the petitioner is currently not traceable despite repeated efforts made by the Delhi Police. The daughter has information that recently the Aadhaar card of the mother has been updated. Under such circumstances, in a habeas corpus writ petition when the Aadhaar Card of the missing person may have been updated, the Court dealing with such a petition would not be able to hear the person concerned who is the holder of Aadhaar Card and is missing,” the Court noted.
Since there is an urgency in Habeas Corpus matters and the missing person could be in danger, the UIDAI can be directed to provide Aadhaar data of such missing person to Court, the Bench said.
“In addition, considering the urgency of the matter, and in order to safeguard the safety and security of an individual, UIDAI can also be directed by the High Court dealing with the Habeas Corpus petition, in exceptional cases such as the present one, to disclose the data to the Court in a sealed cover, even without being afforded a prior hearing. In a habeas corpus, there is a sense of urgency, with which the Court has to act as the missing person could be in danger. Under such circumstances, the UIDAI can be directed to provide the data forthwith."
Hence, it handed over the updated address and mobile number to the Police and asked them to file a fresh status report after an investigation based on these details.
“If there is any updating or editing of information with regard to the Aadhar card of the mother of the Petitioner by the next date of hearing, the same shall also be provided in a sealed cover to the Court, by the UIDAI, on the next date of hearing,” it added.
The Bench also cautioned the police to maintain the confidentiality of the data provided and ordered the High Court registry to keep the same in a sealed cover.
