The Supreme Court of India has clarified that an Aadhaar card cannot be used as proof of age. The court emphasized that school leaving certificates should be the primary document for determining a person's age, particularly in cases related to legal matters such as accident compensation claims.
The Supreme Court judgment in the case of Saroj & Others vs. IFFCO-TOKIO General Insurance Co. Ltd. centers on the validity of using an Aadhaar card as proof of age.
The appellants, family members of Silak Ram, who died in a motorcycle accident in 2015, sought compensation through a claim with the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT). Initially, the MACT awarded them Rs. 19,35,400 with a 7.5% interest rate,
but the High Court later reduced this amount, referencing minimum wage standards and adjusting the deceased’s age based on his Aadhaar card, which showed a different birth date than his school certificate.
The Supreme Court addressed two main questions: which document should take precedence in determining age when there is a discrepancy between the Aadhaar card and the school leaving certificate, and whether the High Court's reduction in compensation was justified given that MACT had calculated the award using District Commissioner-notified income rates and the age based on the school certificate.
The Court held that the school certificate should be prioritized over Aadhaar for establishing age, as it has statutory recognition under the Juvenile Justice Act. Citing a UIDAI circular and several legal precedents, the Court emphasized that Aadhaar serves as a unique identifier but does not qualify as conclusive evidence of age. Consequently, the Court restored the deceased’s age as per his school certificate, applied the appropriate multiplier for compensation, and upheld the original income rate and interest rate set by MACT.
Ultimately, the Supreme Court recalculated the compensation to Rs. 15,00,000 with 8% interest from the claim’s filing date. This judgment underscores that Aadhaar is not definitive proof of age, reinforcing a legal preference for school certificates in age-related determinations.
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