UPSC Prelims 2018 · Question 12 of 99
UPSC Prelims 2018 question on Aadhaar Citizenship Proof
- ExamUPSC CSE
- Year2018
- PaperGeneral Studies Paper I
- SubjectPolity
- TopicGovernance
- DifficultyMedium
- TypeStatement
Consider the following statements:
1. Aadhaar card can be used as a proof of citizenship or domicile.
2. Once issued, Aadhaar number cannot be deactivated or omitted by the issuing Authority.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Show answer
Answer: D. Neither 1 nor 2
Verdict
Neither statement is correct, so the answer is (d) Neither 1 nor 2.
Statement by statement
Statement 1 is INCORRECT. The Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Bill, 2016 expressly provides that the number cannot be used as proof of citizenship or domicile. Aadhaar establishes identity and residence only.
Statement 2 is INCORRECT. The Aadhaar Act regulations allow an individual's Aadhaar number to be omitted permanently or deactivated temporarily by the Unique Identification Authority of India, which issues the numbers and manages the database. The Authority holds this power even in the absence of an effective grievance redressal procedure for those suspended.
Source
The Hindu reports on the Aadhaar Bill in the Lok Sabha and on deactivated Aadhaar numbers.
How to crack it
The news hook here was the Aadhaar Bill debate, and both traps are of a familiar shape. Identity documents in India are almost never proof of citizenship, since citizenship is proved through a narrow set of instruments, so treat any claim that a service document proves nationality as false by default. Statement 2 then falls to the absolute cannot be deactivated, because no issuing authority designs a database it cannot correct.