Aadhar- voter ID linkage and bypassing of Parliament procedures

When a group that does not care about Constitutional values gets absolute power, they are bound to violate all of its norms and safeguards written into it to prevent dictatorial control. Today, it was yet another display of the BJP's contempt for Parliament and the Constitution, when they passed the Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021 in the Lok Sabha with a "voice vote", the same method they used to pass the anti-farmer bills in the Rajya Sabha. We know how a voice vote works amid all the vociferous protests from the opposition and the organised shouting by the ruling party members.

This latest amendment seeks to link the voter ID card to the Aadhar card. Now, the Aadhaar Act 2016 itself was passed in the Parliament through a similar shady move, as a Money Bill, which is supposed to be for stuff that deals directly with taxation or expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India, which Aadhar clearly was not. Though this was challenged in the Supreme Court, the result was predictable. Since then, we have witnessed the BJP Government further extending the tentacles of Aadhar by attempting to link it to everything from your bank account to mobile phone connection to income tax filings to provident fund and even to your Fastag (So that every possible action of an individual can be tracked). Even before Pegasus arrived on the scene, a perfect surveillance machine was slowly being built.

The latest amendment to link it to the voter ID card is being presented as "Voluntary" and "not mandatory", but we know how that works in "new India". Forget the fact that this is a clear violation of the Supreme Court's ruling that held right to privacy as a fundamental right, the enforcement of Aadhar will lead to many people being unable to vote, just like how some died without getting ration in rural areas, after aadhar was made mandatory. Voter suppression is something that the right wing uses widely in countries ranging from the US to Chile, to prevent eligible people from voting. Yesterday, there were reports of the right wing Government of Chile shutting down public transport in areas known to be left leaning, although that could not prevent leftist Gabriel Boric from winning the Presidential election.

With the passage of this bill today in the Lok Sabha, it is clear that the "work" for the 2024 general elections has already begun. The way it will be passed in the Rajya Sabha is quite predictable, because the BJP/NDA has already gained an upper hand in the Rajya Sabha by the illegal suspension of 12 opposition MPs. Despite demands and daily protests from the opposition, the suspensions are not being revoked to push through these anti-people bills, which have not been placed before any committee, just like the anti-farmer bills.

Now, when speaking about Aadhar, it would be wrong to forget my former boss, the shameless corporate czar Mr.Neelakkannan who championed it during the UPA-2 era. He presented it as an idea that would change India. Change it did, and he did make money too through a lot of allied companies related to Aadhar. Just like many other things, Aadhar is another helpful tool that the UPA2 handed over to the fascists to ensure absolute control. It is funny to listen to sanghis speak about Aadhar ensuring security, since even donkeys and monkeys can get Aadhar, as we have seen in many news reports. The aim clearly is not security.