Rajya Sabha passes Bill to link Aadhaar with Voter ID; will purify electoral process, says Law Minister

The Bill seeks to allow electoral registration officers to ask for Aadhaar numbers of applicants wanting to register as voters to establish their identity.

New Delhi: Amid vociferous protests, the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday passed the Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021 approximately within an hour of being introduced by Law Minister Kiren Rijiju.

The Bill seeks to link electoral rolls to the Aadhaar number, allowing electoral registration officers to ask for Aadhaar numbers of applicants wanting to register as voters to establish their identity.

Replying to the debate, the Law Minister said: "It will delete the multiple votes of single person and cleanse the system of the fake voters. The government has deliberated the matter in detail with the Election Commission."

Rijiju said that the Bill will bring important electoral reforms in the country. "We wanted the entire House to participate in the debate but they have been protesting and sloganeering."

He said the Bill, aimed at purifying the electoral process in the country, was brought after wide consultations with the Election Commission and the state governments.

It is based on the recommendation of the Standing Committee Report of the Department of Personnel and Training, Law and Justice, consisting of members of all political parties. The protesting members have either not gone through the draft Bill or are deliberately showing ignorance of the new provisions.

The Opposition leaders raised multiple points of order on the procedure of introduction of the Bill, which was rejected by the chair. Anand Sharma of Congress and Derek O` Brien of TMC said the Opposition did not get time to peruse the Bill.

When the motion to send the Bill to select committee by John Brittas and others were negated, he insisted on division, Deputy Chairman Harivansh Narayan Singh, who was on the chair, said that those seeking division should go to the Chair.