Bombay High Court Directs UIDAI To Ease Aadhaar Correction Process

The Bombay High Court has issued a series of directions to the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) to ensure that citizens are not unfairly burdened by biometric anomalies or technical irregularities in Aadhaar records.

In an order passed on May 6 in Rohit Nikalje & Anr v Regional Officer, UIDAI & Ors, a division bench of Justices Ravindra V Ghuge and Hiten S Venegavkar criticised UIDAI for causing unnecessary hardships. The Court also blamed administrative lapses for avoidable litigation.

The Court observed that maintaining database integrity is a matter of national importance. It, however, said implementation must remain citizen-centric, facilitative, and constitutionally compliant.

“A genuine resident cannot be left remediless merely because a technological or biometric anomaly has occurred in the system,” the order said.

The Bench noted that citizens are increasingly being forced to approach constitutional courts over technical Aadhaar irregularities.

“In several such cases, genuine residents are made to repeatedly visit different offices and authorities without any clear resolution or effective guidance regarding the procedure required to rectify their Aadhaar records. Such situations result in unnecessary hardship, denial of access to essential services and avoidable litigation,” the Court stated.

The Court directed UIDAI to provide written guidance on available remedies. It also asked the authority to maintain facilitation centres and decide applications within four weeks. The Court said UIDAI must issue fresh Aadhaar numbers or cards if no legal impediment exists.

The order came on a plea filed by 19-year-old twin brothers Rohit and Rahul Nikalje. Their Aadhaar records became entangled in administrative confusion after biometric updates in 2022.

The Court ruled that authorities could not attribute errors in childhood biometrics to them. It also directed UIDAI to process their fresh enrolment applications within four weeks.