It’s historic, upholds validity of law: Govt

New Delhi, September 26

The government on Wednesday lauded the Supreme Court judgment on the constitutionality of Aadhaar law, as it said the concept of unique ID number has been accepted in judicial review by the apex court.

Calling the apex court’s verdict “historic”, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said though he had not read the finer-print of the judgment, the 4:1 majority verdict did uphold the constitutional validity of the law.

A five-judge Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra upheld Aadhaar but struck down some of its provisions, including its linkages with bank accounts, mobile phone connections and school admissions. But it kept the provision of Aadhaar mandatory for filing of IT returns and allotment of Permanent Account Number.

Noting that Aadhaar has helped the government save Rs 90,000 crore every year with targeted delivery of public welfare schemes, Jaitley said: “It is a historic judgment and the concept of unique identity number that has been accepted after judicial review is a welcome decision.” — TNS