The Authority termed allegations of “surveillance and violation of privacy rights” as “totally misplaced”.
Trying to allay fears about its plans to hire a social media agency to gauge public sentiments on Aadhaar in the social media, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has told the Supreme Court that the proposed agency will only look at publicly available information on Aadhaar, and will have no access to private conversations.
In an affidavit filed in the apex court, the Authority termed allegations of “surveillance and violation of privacy rights” as “totally misplaced”, and said it “does not, in any manner whatsoever, seek to track or profile any person”. The affidavit was filed in response to a plea by West Bengal MLA Mahua Moitra, of the Trinamool Congress, challenging a Request For Proposal (RFP) issued by the UIDAI on July 18 to appoint the agency.
In its reply, the UIDAI stated: “It is submitted that the proposed social media management is strictly restricted to public posts on social media relating only to Aadhaar and as evident from the Goals and Objectives of the RFP (Request for Proposal), the purpose is to (i) raise awareness about Aadhaar, its usage and benefits, (ii) highlight the role of Aadhaar in e-governance, (iii) make people aware about services and schemes linked to Aadhaar etc, (iv) remove any misconceptions or misinformation about Aadhaar.”
Please click here to read more.