In a significant ruling reinforcing students’ privacy rights, the Supreme Court on Monday directed the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to implement the Orissa High Court’s judgment requiring changes to the consent process for generating APAAR (Automated Permanent Academic Account Registry) IDs. The apex court said parents must be explicitly given the option to refuse consent or opt out of the scheme, ensuring that participation remains genuinely voluntary.
The direction came during the hearing of petitions challenging the Aadhaar-linked academic identification system, with the court also indicating that it would issue additional directions to strengthen data protection safeguards and reaffirm the voluntary nature of the APAAR initiative.
Supreme Court Bench Seeks Stronger Privacy Safeguards
The matter was heard by a Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V. Mohana.
The Bench observed that while the objective of creating a unified digital academic record for students was legitimate, its implementation must comply with constitutional protections and existing data privacy laws. The court emphasised that CBSE’s circulars governing the APAAR scheme should remain consistent with the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023, and respect the privacy rights of students, particularly children.
The apex court directed CBSE to implement the Orissa High Court’s directions across the country, effectively extending the High Court’s ruling nationwide.
Petitioners Raise Concerns Over Privacy And Consent
The petitions were filed by Abhishek Baxi and others, who challenged the Aadhaar-linked APAAR scheme on constitutional and privacy grounds.
Appearing for the petitioners, Senior Advocate Indira Jaising argued that although the government describes APAAR as a voluntary initiative, it has effectively become mandatory because the academic ID is linked to Aadhaar and is allegedly required for students to appear in examinations and access educational services.
She contended that making educational access dependent on an APAAR ID violates the fundamental Right to Education and cannot be justified under the Constitution.
The petitioners also questioned the collection, storage and processing of children’s personal data, arguing that the scheme may not fully comply with the provisions of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.
Supreme Court Refers To Privacy Rights Of Children
During the hearing, the petitioners cited the Supreme Court’s landmark Puttaswamy judgment, which recognised the Right to Privacy as a fundamental right under Article 21 of the Constitution.
It was argued that children enjoy enhanced privacy protections and cannot be compelled to obtain an Aadhaar number as a precondition for accessing education.
The petitioners further sought safeguards to ensure:
- Informed and voluntary parental consent
- A meaningful and simple opt-out mechanism
- The right to withdraw consent at any stage
- Protection against denial of examinations, certificates or other educational benefits for students who choose not to enrol in APAAR
Orissa High Court Judgment To Be Implemented Across India
The Supreme Court noted that the Orissa High Court, in its December 2025 judgment in Rohit Anand Das & Anr vs State of Odisha & Ors, had already directed the Union Ministry of Education to revise the APAAR consent form.
The High Court had found that the existing consent form failed to adequately communicate the voluntary nature of the scheme because it did not provide parents with a clear option to refuse consent at the outset. Instead, it only allowed withdrawal after consent had already been granted.
The High Court had also highlighted that children’s personal data deserves enhanced constitutional protection under Article 21.
Since the Central Government did not challenge that judgment, the Supreme Court directed CBSE to adopt the same standards across the country.
During the proceedings, Chief Justice Surya Kant remarked that the court would direct CBSE to implement the Orissa High Court’s judgment on a pan-India basis while also examining additional issues concerning privacy and data protection.
APAAR Scheme Introduced To Digitise Student Records
The APAAR (Automated Permanent Academic Account Registry) scheme was launched by the Union Government on July 29, 2023, as part of the National Education Policy (NEP) implementation.
The initiative aims to assign every student a lifelong unique digital academic identification number linked to Aadhaar. The identifier is intended to maintain a student’s educational records throughout their academic journey, making it easier to manage admissions, examinations, transfers, scholarships and academic achievements.
The government has maintained that the scheme is voluntary and designed to streamline educational administration. However, the petitioners argued that, in practice, students and parents often face pressure to enrol, raising concerns about informed consent and data privacy.
With the Supreme Court’s latest direction, CBSE will now be required to modify its consent procedures to ensure that participation in the APAAR scheme remains genuinely voluntary while strengthening safeguards for children’s personal data across the country.
