Been mostly at the Supreme Court today and then reading the Aadhaar judgement (1400+ pages). Expect clearer takeaways soon. Till then, a hot take - in no particular order - follows:
Even though judges disagreed on some points regarding Aadhaar and surveillance, they have ended up demanding much higher standards. Aadhaar Act data sharing & national security provisions assailed. And in a broader +ve move, demanded that HC judges be involved in oversight.
Private sector Aadhaar data sharing, eKYC, authentication unconstitutional. Any change would require new laws - which the Sup Ct has indicated they will review if enacted. So, looks like bye bye IndiaStack & many of the crony capitalist digital ID bad actors who have been active
The Supreme Court can scrutinise decisions of an assembly, Lok Sabha speaker in certifying a money bill. But a strong divergence of views about the Aadhaar Act between Justices Chandrachud & Sikri. Personally, I'm not convinced by the 2-3 para assessment of Sikri J. at all.
A deeper initial take and explainer was promised. And thanks to @namanwa @akashsinghccmg and other colleagues in @accessnow , here it is!
