Reporter’s Diary: ‘Pls cover this event, provided you have an Aadhaar card’

A Defence department notification for media registration for covering an upcoming commissioning ceremony of Coast Guard ship Varad demanded that a soft copy of the Aadhaar card be mailed for the registration process. On being pointed out that other government-issued cards and media cards were being accepted as identification document even for high-security events, the Defence representatives claimed that they wanted to make the registration process uniform and hence have sought Aadhaar proof for providing media passes. Even the possession of government-issued media accreditation cards was apparently not sufficient for the PRO, who declined an explanation and provided a blanket response that it was the ‘standard procedure’ for all government events. With so much debate happening in the country over making Aadhaar mandatory, and even the Supreme Court directing that it cannot be insisted upon in all cases, demanding the same from mediapersons came as a shocker to many journalists, who had resisted applying for the same for years. Ironically, while Aadhaar cards could be obtained by visiting the nearest e-Seva centre with required documents, a government accreditation card requires several years of work experience with a recognised media outlet among other requirements.