#Aadhaar verdict: What the dailies have to say

On September 26, the Supreme Court of India delivered its verdict on the constitutional validity of Aadhaar. In a 4-1 decision, a five-judge bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices AK Sikri, AM Khanwilkar, DY Chandrachud and Ashok Bhushan upheld the legality of Aadhaar. Though some sections such as the national security exception for disclosure of Aadhaar information (Section 33(2)), Section 57 of Aadhaar Act, which allows private entities to avail Aadhaar data, were struck down.

The judgement also stated that Aadhaar cannot be mandated for opening bank accounts. The top court also struck down mobile-Aadhaar linking. Here’s what the headlines said about the judgement.

English dailies

The frontpage of The India Express stated: “Supreme Court gives Aadhaar some privacy”. The lead report stated that the apex court had “upheld the constitutional validity of the Aadhaar Act on the ground that it ‘struck a fair balance between the right of privacy of the individual with right to life of the same individual as a beneficiary'”. It also stated the top court “ring-fenced the law from possible misuse by the State and private entities.” The verdict also got coverage on pages 7 through 9. The editorial headline stated: “A fine balance”.

Hindustan Times led with “Aadhaar public, limited”. It had coverage on the “Aadhaar verdict” on pages 8 through 10. In its editorial headline, the paper stated: “Aadhaar verdict: SC has validated the invalids”, while the blurb read: “The court didn’t dwell too much on the issues of security, data protection and privacy.” It also stated that “by upholding the validity of Aadhaar, the Supreme Court has, in some ways, served the needs of the average Indian who is the beneficiary of at least one government welfare scheme” — which the paper stated, “was the original vision of Aadhaar”.

Times of India led with the headline: “Aadhaar stays, minus fangs and pangs”. The paper had “Aadhaar Order” on pages 16 and 17 as well. In its editorial, “Cutting The Bloat“, the paper stated: “Aadhaar’s untrammelled run over the Indian people has come to an end with the Supreme Court cutting it down to size on Wednesday.”

The Mint led with “Aadhaar valid, but not Supreme”, while Business Standard went with “Aadhaar gets SC backing”. The Hindu‘s lead was “Aadhaar gets thumbs up from Supreme Court”. In its editorial, “Aadhaar survives”, the paper stated: “The Supreme Court finds a pragmatic middle path between the Aadhaar scheme’s excesses and its benefits to the marginalised.”

The paper also stated that in “upholding the constitutional validity of Aadhaar and clarifying areas in which it cannot be made mandatory, the Supreme Court has restored the original intent of the programme: to plug leakages in subsidy schemes and to have better targeting of welfare benefits.”

Hindi dailies
Commenting on Supreme Court’s busy day, as it delivered verdicts in Aadhaar, live streaming of court proceedings case and reservation in promotions case, Dainik Jagran‘s headline stated: “Aadhaar se aarakshan tak, supreme faisle (From Aadhaar to reservation, supreme decisions)”.

Dainik Bhaskar led with “Aadhaar barkarar (Aadhaar upheld)”. The second part of Aadhaar is printed in a separate font colour indicating “aadhaa barkarar (half upheld)”. Meanwhile, Hindi daily Hindustan led with: “Aadhaar vaedh per sabhi jagah zaruri nai(Aadhaar valid, but not mandatory for everything).”