No cause for concern over Aadhaar linkage, says Kerala Chief Electoral Officer

‘No entry in poll roll will be deleted for declining to furnish Aadhaar number’

Sanjay Kaul, Chief Electoral Officer (Kerala), on Friday sought to allay concerns regarding the linking of the Aadhaar number of voters with the Elector’s Photo Identification Cards (EPIC).

There is no cause for apprehension in this regard and Aadhaar-related information of voters will be kept secure, Mr. Kaul said after meeting representatives of recognised political parties in connection with the amendments made by the Centre to the Act and Rules concerning electoral roll preparation.

Mr. Kaul told a press conference here that some political parties had raised objections to seeding the Aadhaar number of voters with the EPIC while others were okay with it.

Not mandatory

Linking the Aadhaar number with the voter’s ID is purely voluntary, the CEO said. No entry in the electoral roll will be deleted if a voter declines to furnish the Aadhaar number.

On the other hand, Aadhaar linkage will help establish the identity of the electors, authenticate entries and prevent duplication in the rolls. So far in Kerala, 6,485 voters have linked their Voter’s IDs with Aadhaar, according to Mr. Kaul.

Existing voters can apply to link the Aadhaar using the Electoral Authentication Form (Form 6B) either via the Election Commission website www.nvsp.in or the Voter Helpline App.

Aadhaar linkage is one of the three key amendments introduced in electoral laws by the Centre.

The Aadhaar information will not go into public domain, Mr. Kaul said. When handling the Aadhaar number of voters, Section 37 of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016, which deals with penalties for disclosing identity information will apply, according to Election officials.