The Madras High Court on Wednesday, December 21, dismissed a petition seeking an order for cancellation of compulsory linking of Aadhaar card to the electricity card to get subsidised electricity. A bench comprising Justices Raja and Bharatha Chakravarthy dismissed the petition stating that it had been filed without any basis and hence, an order cannot be issued on the same. In September 2022, electricity tariffs were increased in Tamil Nadu and the government had offered to provide the first 100 units as a subsidy. To avail of this subsidy, consumers had to link their electricity cards with their Aadhaar cards. This was announced through a Government Order (GO) passed by the Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO) in October 2022.
A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed by a lawyer and the head of Makkal Sakthi Katchi party, ML Ravi. In the PIL, he mentioned that a person’s Aadhaar card can be linked to only one house and this would make it difficult for tenants in a rental house when they move out. He stated that it would be a hassle to relink the Aadhaar with a different house. The PIL further said that the special camps conducted by the government to link Aadhaar with the electricity card have not informed people that other government documents can be used in place of Aadhaar. The PIL mentioned that there is no provision in the law to deny people electricity at subsidised rates solely because they have not registered their Aadhaar and electricity cards. The petition also argued that linking Aadhaar to electricity cards might be discriminatory because not everyone will be able to avail of those benefits and other social welfare schemes.
Opposing these arguments on behalf of the TANGEDCO, it was explained that the issue of subsidy for tenants is a matter between the owners and the tenants. It was further mentioned that the Aadhaar will be linked on the basis of the electricity meters and only after obtaining approval from the tenant and the owner of the house.