For BJP, Aadhaar is a tool of oppression: Rahul Gandhi

New Delh, Sep 26: Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday hailed the Supreme Court for its historic Aadhaar verdict and said that Aadhaar was a tool BJP intended to use to oppress people.

Reacting hours after the verdict, the Congress chief said "For Congress, Aadhaar was an instrument of empowerment. For the BJP, Aadhaar is a tool of oppression and surveillance," Gandhi tweeted. "Thank you Supreme Court for supporting the Congress vision and protecting," he added.

The Congress party welcomed the Supreme Court decision to strike down the "draconian" Section 57 of the Aadhaar Act which allows any private entity to demand the unique identity document from citizens for the purpose of identification.

It added that the next step was to destroy the citizen's data already collected by the government under the Aadhaar Act. "We welcome the Supreme Court decision to strike down Section 57 of the Aadhaar Act," the party said in a tweet. Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said the verdict had upheld the individual's right to privacy.