HP Trader's union files complaint over anomalies in Aadhar cards of many migrants in Shimla

Shimla, Sep 20 (PTI) A traders' union has lodged a police complaint claiming many migrants working in Gumma Bazaar here were found to have January 1 as their date of birth in their Aadhar cards.
     The development comes amid the demand for proper identification and verification of outsiders working in Himachal Pradesh following the dispute over unauthorised mosques in the state.
     An FIR is yet to be registered on the matter, the police said.
     "A large number of migrant labourers are illiterate and do not have their birth certificate or Class 10 certificate, which serve as proofs of their date of birth. To give them the benefit of government schemes, the date of birth is written as January 1 in such matters," a police officer said, seeking anonymity.
     "We have checked some Aadhaar cards of migrants in Shimla randomly and they were found to be correct," the officer said.
     In his complaint to the police on Thursday, Dev Chauhan, president of the Gumma Beopar Mandal, alleged that of the 86 migrants working in and around the Gumma bazaar, located about 30 km from the state capital, 46 have their date of birth as January 1 in their Aadhaar cards.
     Most of these people are from minority communities, Chauhan added.
     "Older people would not remember their birth date and could have a similar birth date but even people born between 2000-2009 have the same birthdays in their Aadhaar cards which is intriguing," he said and demanded proper verification of outsiders.
     Speaking to PTI on Friday, Shimla SP Sanjeev Kumar Gandhi said, "The police check the criminal antecedents and rent agreements of migrant labourers from time to time."
     The SP called for a a strict mechanism that would require employers and landlords providing jobs and accommodation to compulsorily get the identity proofs of migrants verified by authorities.
     A dispute that started with a scuffle between a barber from the minority community and another local businessman in the Malyana area in the suburbs of Shimla on August 30 turned into a communal issue with Hindu groups demanding demolition of unauthorised mosques and residents at large and identification and verification of outsiders coming in the state.
     Ten people were injured during a protest demanding demolition of a portion of a mosque in Sanjauli area of Shimla last week. Last Friday, water cannons were used in Mandi on protestors demanding demolition of encroachment by a mosque on government land in Mandi town.
     On Tuesday, the residents of Kasumpti in Shimla submitted a memorandum to demolish a mosque in Kasumpti area and similar demands are also coming in from Sunni and other areas in the state. Protests were also witnessed in Nerva and Sunni in Shimla district.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)