New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday raised sharp concerns over non-citizens obtaining Aadhaar cards and questioned whether such individuals should be allowed voting rights, stressing once again that Aadhaar is not proof of citizenship.

A bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, while hearing petitions challenging the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in several states, asked: “Should intruders with Aadhaar be made voters?”

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Reiterating its earlier stance, the bench said an Aadhaar card does not “confer absolute proof of citizenship.” The judges noted that this is precisely why Aadhaar is listed only as one of the acceptable documents during verification. “If anyone is deleted, they will have to be given a notice of deletion,” the court added.

The judges pointed out that the Aadhaar Act itself clearly states that the identification number does not establish citizenship or domicile.

CJI Surya Kant remarked: “Aadhaar is a creation of statute for availing benefits. Just because a person was granted Aadhaar for ration, should he be made a voter also? Suppose someone belongs to a neighbouring country and works as a labourer.”

The court further underscored that the Election Commission has full authority to verify the authenticity of documents submitted with Form 6 applications for inclusion in electoral rolls, stating the poll body is not a mere “post office.”