New Delhi: In a significant move, the Supreme Court bench directed the ECI to accept Aadhaar as an acceptable proof of identity for individuals staking claims. While Aadhaar was not originally among the 11 approved documents for the SIR process, the Court said it was a statute-approved form of identification.
Justice Surya Kant observed, “Deletion of voters from the electoral rolls can have civil consequences of depriving a citizen of the right to franchise. A fair procedure needs to be followed, and Aadhaar should be accepted.” The ECI had earlier maintained that both Aadhaar and voter cards were not conclusive proof of citizenship and needed to be supported by other documents.