Aadhaar Not Mandatory For EWS Admission In Private Schools Says Delhi HC

The Delhi High Court on Thursday has refused to interfere with an order that has suspended the enforcement of the city government’s decision that a child’s Aadhaar card would have to be mandatorily furnished for his admission to a private school under any of the 3 categories of economically weaker section, disadvantaged group and children with special needs.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma dismissed an appeal filed by the Delhi government against the interim order of a single-judge bench, and stated that the requirement is prima facie in conflict with the constitutional provisions pertaining to privacy.

The bench, also comprising Justice Sanjeev Narula, stated in an order passed last week, “The issue of obtaining sensitive personal details of a child, as observed in the K S Puttaswamy case (by the Supreme Court), would have the potential of infringing their right to privacy under Article 21 of the Constitution of India.”

It noted that the supreme court has asserted that making submission of Aadhaar mandatory would contravene the fundamental rights safeguarded by Article 21 and any such limitation can’t be constitutionally justified.

The court concluded, “It would thus suffice to state that the impugned circulars are prima facie in conflict with the constitutional provisions, effect whereof has rightly been stayed by the learned single judge.”

The order of the single judge was passed on a petition filed by a man who alleged that his 5-year-old child was unable to participate in the computerised lottery scheme for allocation of seats in schools for the 2023 academic year as he didn’t have an Aadhaar card.

The Delhi government, through circulars issued on July 12, 2022 and February 2, 2023, mandated the requirement of an Aadhaar card or number for admission to private unaided recognized schools in the national capital under the EWS, DG, CWSN categories.

The court noted that the single judge is yet to take a final view on the petition and there is no merit in the appeal.
It ruled, “Dismissed, along with other pending applications.”

In appeal against the single judge’s order passed on July 27, the Delhi government’s standing counsel Santosh Kumar Tripathi argued that the judge failed to adequately understand the intent and objectives behind the circulars.

Furthermore, he stated the requirement for an Aadhaar card served a practical purpose and aimed at eliminating duplicate applications and was a policy initiative designed to modernise the admission process for the EWS and DG categories in entry-level classes in private, unaided, recognised schools.

Also, it was argued that mandating an Aadhaar card didn’t violate a child’s right to free and compulsory education, rather it served as a safeguard against fraudulent applications and admissions based on false identities.

The government counsel also clarified that the authorities have no intention of compromising the privacy or security of the candidates.