"Do not show us the law:" Gujarat High Court slams UIDAI for affidavit on sharing of Aadhaar info

The Gujarat High Court on Monday came down heavily on the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) for its affidavit filed in a case pertaining to a 10th standard student who was missing since 2011 [Nagjibhai Ranchhodbhai Jadav (Mochi) v. State Of Gujarat]..On reading the Authority's affidavit filed in the matter, a Bench of Justices Sonia Gokani and Mauna M Bhatt warned that it would take contempt action against it. The Bench emphasised that safeguarding the interest of every person was the foremost duty of all authorities, and reminded the UIDAI that a human life was at stake in the case."You must realise you are dealing with human life! All authorities in this country exist because of the Constitution and the foremost aspect is to safeguard the interest of every citizen, every person for that matter! Nobody should feel their task is such that even the human beings, no matter what happens to them.".The Court was hearing a habeas corpus petition filed by the parents of a 10th standard student who had been been missing for the last ten years. Hailing from a small village called Diyodar, they had very limited resources and limited knowledge of law. The parents attempted to find the boy on their own, and when they did not succeed, they approached the High Court.In order to support the search efforts, the Court had directed the UIDAI to share the missing boy's Aadhaar information with the Superintendent of Police. "These details are to be shared with the Superintendent of Police who is of IPS cadre and with requisite seriousness has supervised this task of tracing the corpus," the Court had ordered in January. The Court had also categorically said that the information shall be used by the Superintendent of Police himself and could be divulged to a limited number of officers in his team - not more than two to three. During the previous hearing in February, the UIDAI told the Court that the matching data was missing in the record, and therefore, it was to be presumed that the missing boy was never issued an Aadhaar card..On Monday, the Court clarified that it understood the circumstances when counsel for UIDAI reiterated the position. However, to refuse action despite a Court's order was unacceptable, it said.Further, the Court disapproved of the tone of the affidavit which cited Supreme Court judgments to buttress the Authority's refusal to act. "If you say it is not matching, fine. Fair enough. We also understand. To say that we will not do it, you cannot force us... don't show us the law. Once your counsel has shown it, then the party has no business to come and tell this Court they will not abide.".The Bench also said,"We are giving it to the IPS officer. The senior most officer of the district, we know that he is conducting himself with all responsibilities. Then also, how do you arrogate yourself that you will not trust anybody?"Before concluding the proceedings, the Court advised that all authorities should put their heads together and ensure that the parents get their child back..Counsel for UIDAI also assured the Court that a fresh affidavit, excluding the offending paragraphs, would be filed along with an unconditional apology.