Madras High Court declares Aadhaar-detail updates are a fundamental right

In a landmark judgment, the Madras High Court has held that holders of the Aadhaar card have a fundamental right to correct or update their demographic information, such as name and date of birth, under Section 31 of the Aadhaar Act.

Chennai | October 31, 2025: Justice G. R. Swaminathan observed that since Aadhaar often acts as the gateway to welfare benefits, the right to correct Aadhaar details is “concomitant” with the right to receive benefits, which itself is a fundamental right.

The court also directed the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) to ensure that demographic update services are accessible at the local level, pointing out the hardships faced by a 74-year-old petitioning widow who was forced to travel far to get corrections done.

The decision underscores that once a card-holder shows correct supporting documentation, UIDAI is duty bound to make the correction, marking a shift from “may” to “must” under Section 31(3) of the Act.

For citizens, this means mistakes such as miss-spelt names, incorrect birth-dates or mis-entered address fields can now be treated as part of their constitutional rights and cannot be denied due to administrative barriers or lack of nearby enrolment centres.

The ruling is expected to prompt UIDAI and state governments to decentralise Aadhaar-update infrastructure, making local Aadhaar centres more effective and responsive to correction requests, particularly for elderly and vulnerable residents.

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