Will Ask CBSE To Give Opt-Out Option In APAAR Consent Forms For Students: Supreme Court In Plea Against Aadhaar Linkage

The Supreme Court on Monday said that it will direct the Central Board of Secondary Education to implement a direction of the Orissa High Court to amend the model consent form for generation of APAAR (Automated Permanent Academic Account Registry) IDs to explicitly provide parents with an option to refuse consent or opt out of the scheme.

The Court was hearing a writ petition filed by the parents of four students challenging the constitutional validity of the APAAR ID scheme for students on the ground that it compelled students to obtain Aadhaar IDs. The petitioners also raised concerns about the protection, storage and processing of students' personal data, and sought strict compliance with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana said that it will also pass a direction to the CBSE to address these concerns.

Senior Advocate Indira Jaising, for the petitioner, submitted that the primary concern was that children are being mandatorily asked to register under a non-statutory scheme, when serious issues concerning right to privacy and data protection were involved.

She pointed out that in the 2019 Puttaswamy judgment, the Supreme Court had held that children cannot be compelled to get an Aadhaar number. Although the government describes APAAR as a voluntary scheme, the APAAR ID is linked to Aadhaar. Consequently, in practice, a student must possess an Aadhaar number to obtain an APAAR ID. Jaising contended that since an APAAR ID is required for students to appear for examinations, children are effectively compelled to obtain Aadhaar despite the purportedly voluntary nature of the scheme.

"Right to education is not a targeted service. The Right to education is a Constitutional right. Therefore, asking a child to get an Aadhaar and an APAAR for being sent up to exams is against the Constitution," she submitted.

However, seemingly unconvinced by the arguments of the petitioner, the Chief Justice of India said, "Let us not doubt everything in the country with a suspicious eye; it is a welcome step."

The CJI said that the idea behind the scheme is to have a unique ID for every student. "The idea is that, at the CBSE Headquarters, there is clear information on who is studying what. It helps in maintaining the teacher-child ratio also. This is for smooth implementation of the curriculum as well."

While conceding that there might be a bona fide aim for the scheme, Jaising asserted that it must be achieved through legitimate and proportionate means.

The issue is "how voluntary is the voluntary scheme", Jaising submitted, highlighting that though on paper, the scheme is voluntary, on the ground level, it operates as mandatory.

She advanced an alternative plea seeking guidelines regarding the obtaining of consent and safeguarding of the data. According to her, the scheme was being implemented in violation of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.

"We are concerned with the micro-level data. It is my right to be forgotten, to withdraw consent. I don't want people to know when I am a professional whether I failed in any subject while at school," Jaising submitted.

The bench then observed that the CBSE's circulars will be in any case subject to the prevailing law, and that they do not exempt the application of the DPDP Act. So the scheme will have to be carried out as per the extant law.

Jaising however said that the consent forms are in the format of fixed contracts, and there is no option for informed consent or revoking it. In this context, she relied on the judgment passed by the Orissa High Court in December 2025 in Rohit Anand Das & Anr. v. State of Odisha & Ors. , which directed the Union to amend the APAAR consent form to allow an option to refuse consent and also to opt out of the scheme. Jaising requested that a declaration be made that the High Court's direction will apply pan-India.

She requested the Court to direct the CBSE and the schools to ensure strict compliance with Section 6 of the DPDP Act while taking consent for the program.

The bench enquired if the Orissa High Court's judgment has been challenged. On being informed that there was no challenge to it, the bench said that it will pass a direction to the CBSE to follow its judgment.

"We will direct CBSE to implement this judgment on pan-India basis...as the HC order has been accepted. We are directing CBSE to examine the issues as well," CJI said.

The order will be uploaded later.

What was Orissa High Court's direction?

The Orissa High Court has directed the Union Ministry of Education and other authorities to amend the model consent form used for generating APAAR (Automated Permanent Academic Account Registry) IDs to expressly provide parents with an option to refuse consent or opt out of the scheme. Holding that the present form does not adequately reflect the government's own position that APAAR is voluntary, Justice Sashikanta Mishra observed that the absence of an opt-out provision raises legitimate concerns regarding the fundamental right to privacy.

The case was filed by the father of a kindergarten student, after the school asked parents to submit consent along with Aadhaar details for generation of an APAAR ID. The petitioner argued that although the Ministry of Education describes APAAR as a voluntary initiative, the consent form did not allow parents to decline participation. Instead, it only permitted withdrawal of consent after it had already been granted. The petitioner also challenged clauses allowing a child's personal information to be shared with various entities for vaguely defined "limited purposes," contending that they violated the child's right to privacy under Article 21.

The Union Government defended the scheme, stating that APAAR provides students with a lifelong digital academic identifier to maintain educational records and facilitate seamless academic progression. It maintained that participation is voluntary, schools can record parental consent as either "Yes" or "No," and parents may withdraw consent at any time.

Relying on the Supreme Court's Constitution Bench judgment in K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India, the High Court reiterated that children enjoy heightened privacy protections and that education cannot be made conditional upon Aadhaar. The Court held that a post-facto right to withdraw consent cannot substitute the right to refuse consent at the outset. It concluded that if the scheme is genuinely voluntary, the consent form must explicitly provide parents with an option to opt out. Accordingly, the Court allowed the writ petition and directed the authorities to consider amending the model consent form within two months.

Details of the petition

The Government of India under the aegis of MoE introduced the APAAR scheme on 29.07.2023 to start 'one student, one unique ID' initiative. It aims to assign students unique IDs linked to their Aadhaar numbers to track lifelong educational records and consolidate all academic achievements in one place.

The petition was filed by the parents of some students challenging the scheme, contending that the creation of a lifelong, Aadhaar-linked academic identifier violates the fundamental rights of students.

The writ petition seeks a declaration that the APAAR scheme, including its design as a centralized, Aadhaar-linked academic identity and the associated data-processing architecture, is unconstitutional, ultra vires the executive powers of the Union, and violative of Articles 14, 19, 21 and 21A of the Constitution.

The petition also seeks an order restraining the Union and other authorities from implementing the scheme in a manner that effectively makes enrollment mandatory. It urges the Court to ensure that the scheme is implemented strictly as a voluntary initiative, in accordance with the government's stated position.

The petitioner has further sought quashing of executive circulars, guidelines and communications that operationalise Aadhaar-linked academic identifiers and APAAR enrolment. Among the documents specifically challenged is Circular No. LOC/2025-26 dated August 27, 2025, issued by the concerned respondent authority, on the ground that it is unconstitutional, ultra vires and violative of Articles 14, 21 and 21A.

In the alternative, the petition requests the Court to direct that any future or modified academic record-keeping system must not be mandatorily linked with Aadhaar. It contends that any such system should function only on the basis of informed and revocable consent, provide a meaningful opt-out mechanism and equivalent non-digital alternatives, and comply with the principles of legality, necessity and proportionality as well as the provisions of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.

The plea also seeks a writ of mandamus directing the authorities to ensure that students who choose not to enrol under the APAAR scheme do not suffer any adverse consequences. It specifically asks the Court to prevent denial of admissions, examination registration, mark sheets, certificates or recognition of educational institutions on account of non-enrolment under the scheme.

The petition was filed through Advocate-on-Record Paras Nath Singh.

Case : ABHISHEK BAXI Vs UNION OF INDIA WP.(C) No. 832/2026