Bengal government can amend Aadhaar plea

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday permitted the West Bengal government to amend its petition challenging the notifications issued by the Union government making Aadhaar mandatory for availing benefits under welfare schemes.

In the last hearing on October 30, a bench of justices A.K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan faulted the State for challenging a law enacted by Parliament and suggested that the Chief Minister Mamta Banerjee should file a petition in her individual capacity.

During the resumed hearing on Friday, the court was informed that instead of the Chief Minister filing a separate petition the present petition has amended and it now sought to challenge only the welfare notifications and not the validity of the law. The Bench permitted the amendment and directed it to be tagged with a list of petitions pending adjudication before the Constitution Bench.

Meanwhile Femin Panikkassery Subramanian, a Dubai based NRI has challenged the provisions of Rule 2(b) of the Prevention of Money-laundering (Maintenance of Records) Second Amendment Rules, 2017 which seeks to amend Rule 9 of the I Prevention of Money-laundering (Maintenance of Records) Rules, 2005 making it mandatory for linking of Aadhaar wit bank accounts.

The petitioner submitted that non-resident Indians (NRIs) and persons of Indian origin (PIOs) can open and maintain three types of accounts namely, non-resident ordinary rupee account (NRO account), non-resident (external) rupee account (NRE account) and foreign currency non-resident (bank) account FCNR(B) account. The petitioner is a bonafide account holder of several bank accounts in India and regularly sends handsome amounts meant for his family’s maintenance and future savings. At present the Aadhaar law did not permit NRIs to be enrolled for Aadhaar card. But the law as amended makes it mandatory for linking of Aadhaar with bank accounts. The RBI has also issued instructions for linking of Aadhaar with bank accounts.