Ahmedabad: The Gujarat High Court has instructed the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) to share Aadhaar-related information of five individuals, suspected to be Bangladeshi nationals, who are accused of cheating and forgery in a case registered in Vadodara.

The case involves the alleged exchange of counterfeit 100 Riyal currency notes for ₹15,000. Justice Hasmukh D. Suthar issued the directive while hearing a plea from the State of Gujarat, which sought disclosure of information under Section 33 of the Aadhaar Act, 2016, to aid the ongoing investigation.

While noting that Sections 28, 29, and 30 of the Aadhaar Act generally prohibit the disclosure of identity and authentication information, the Court pointed out that Section 33 allows for exceptions when ordered by a High Court Judge.

The Court emphasized that, in order to properly investigate the matter and uncover the truth, access to identity information was necessary. Since the accused are suspected to be foreign nationals who allegedly used fake Aadhaar and identity documents, verifying these through UIDAI was deemed essential.

According to the complaint filed at J.P. Road Police Station in Vadodara, the accused had promised to exchange Saudi Riyals for ₹15,000 but handed over only two forged notes, thereby committing fraud and breach of trust.

During the inquiry, forged Aadhaar and PAN cards were found with the accused. However, the investigating team encountered legal limitations while seeking authentication data from UIDAI.

Highlighting the importance of Aadhaar authentication in progressing the investigation, the Court instructed UIDAI to provide the necessary identity information of the accused to the Investigating Officer. With this directive, the petition was disposed of. DeshGujarat