Will review Aadhaar judgement, await DoT orders: COAI

New Delhi : The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) will review the Supreme Court's verdict on Aadhaar and wait for the telecom department's instructions for further action.

The COAI statement comes after the Supreme Court on Wednesday struck down Section 57 of the Aadhaar Act which allowed private companies to seek Aadhaar authentication. This in turn strikes down the mandatory linkage of mobile phone numbers to the Aadhaar number.

"We are going to review the judgement and its implications. We shall await further orders and instructions from DoT. Our member operators as always will definitely comply with the law," Rajan S. Mathews, Director General, COAI said in a statement.

The SC although disallowing private entities from seeking Aadhaar numbers, upheld the constitutionality of Aadhaar for use only in government-funded social benefit schemes and PAN and Income Tax Returns.