Law on Aadhaar- Based on the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016

When Aadhaar was initiated in the year 2009, it began as an experiment. The experiment was based on collecting the biometric and identity information of individuals and thereby making the same the basis for identifying the identity of an individual. Given the fact that the Aadhaar ecosystem collects personal identity data in the electronic form, I was fascinated with the legalities surrounding Aadhaar. My work in Cyberlaw jurisprudence only demonstrated that Aadhaar jurisprudence was one evolving area of the Cyberlaw jurisprudence. The advent of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016 has not just clarified a variety of ambiguous issues and legal concerns pertaining to Aadhaar but also has paved the way for making the Aadhaar Number as the legal basis for identifying the identity of an individual. I have written this book which encapsulates and collates all relevant aspects concerning the complex legalities and legal, policy and regulatory aspects pertaining to Aadhaar in India from the time of its conception till the writing of this book. I have written this book to inform lay readers about all legal, policy and regulatory issues pertaining to Aadhaar numbers, Aadhaar ecosystem, Central Identities Data Repository and also other aspects pertaining to statutory authority concerning Aadhaar being the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI). I have watched with fascination the growth of Aadhaar jurisprudence in various cases which have also been encapsulated in the present book. I have written this book in a layman’s language so that various technical nuances and complexities pertaining to legalities concerning data protection can be understood. I hope this book would be of immense value for all readers who would be interested in knowing more about Aadhaar and connected legalities. Given the fact that at the time of writing, more than 98 crore Indians have already accepted Aadhaar, we have to be prepared for a new future where Aadhaar is likely to become the de facto national identity based on biometric and demographic information. As an author, I believe that with the implementation of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016, the process of growth of evolving jurisprudence on Aadhaar is likely to continue at a rapid pace. It will be interesting to see how this jurisprudence evolves over a period of time.