One Number, Two Aadhaar Cards: How A Bizarre Karnataka Mix-Up Affected Two Families

Two men from Karnataka's Bagalkote district were reportedly issued the same Aadhaar number, leaving their families struggling to access pensions, housing aid and other government benefits. Despite repeated appeals, the issue remains unresolved.

A bizarre Aadhaar mix-up has left two men from Hirepadsalagi village in Jamakhandi taluk facing years of hardship after they were reportedly issued the exact same Aadhaar number. Despite having separate identities and documents, Anand Badiger and Channabasava Doddamani discovered that their Aadhaar cards carried an identical number. The error has allegedly prevented their families from accessing essential government benefits, including pensions, housing assistance and other welfare schemes.

The two men have separate identity documents, but the Aadhaar number assigned to both of them is reportedly the same. According to their families, the error has created repeated problems while accessing government services and welfare schemes.

Differently-Abled Anand Has Not Received His Pension For Years

Anand Badiger is differently-abled and unable to undertake physically demanding work. He is eligible for a monthly disability pension from the government, but his family claims that he has not received the pension for years because of the Aadhaar discrepancy.

The family says it depends on government assistance and has struggled financially due to the loss of the pension. It was also reportedly sanctioned a house through the Gram Panchayat, but alleges that it was unable to receive the benefit because of the Aadhaar issue.

According to the family, the confusion has also affected Channabasava's household. They claim that even his young disabled son has been unable to access government benefits because of problems linked to his father's Aadhaar details.

Endless Trips To The UIDAI Office In Bengaluru

The two men and their families have been trying to resolve the issue for several years. They have submitted multiple requests to the Jamakhandi taluk administration and approached their local MLA seeking intervention.

They also travelled to the UIDAI office in Bengaluru several times to explain the problem and seek a correction. However, the families claim that the issue remains unresolved.

The family says that after visiting the UIDAI office in Bengaluru last year, they were assured that the matter would be resolved. However, even after six months, the Aadhaar issue reportedly remains unresolved. They also claim that a new problem has emerged, with their names allegedly being swapped in official documents.

Villagers Demand Immediate Government Intervention

The families say that an Aadhaar number meant to uniquely identify one person has been assigned to two individuals, severely affecting their access to government services and welfare benefits.

Villagers are now demanding that the District Administration, Taluk Administration and UIDAI officials intervene immediately, verify the documents and issue separate and correct Aadhaar numbers to both men.

They have also urged the concerned departments to coordinate and ensure that all pending benefits, including pensions and housing assistance, are released to the eligible families.

The families have made an appeal to the authorities, saying, "We are not getting any solution even after running to offices for years. This Aadhaar error has blocked us from getting government benefits. We request the officials to look at our case with humanity and give us justice quickly."

'Aadhaar Registration Started In 2012': Channabasava

"The Aadhaar registration process started in 2012. Anand Badiger and I were both standing in a queue at the Gram Panchayat centre. After waiting for hours, my turn came. Anand had finished his registration just before me. When my turn came, they gave me a receipt with the same number. Because of the registration operator's mistake, I didn't even get my Aadhaar card at first," said Channabasava Doddamani, one of the affected residents of Hirepadsalagi village.

Two years later, in 2014, I finally got my Aadhaar card, but we only realised in 2017 that both cards had the same number. We found out when government benefits stopped, and my 7-year-old disabled son couldn't get his pension. We got a letter from the local MLA and went to the Aadhaar office in Bengaluru three times. They told us they would cancel both Aadhaar cards and that we should apply for new ones after three months.

"A whole year has passed since then, but our problem is not solved. I couldn't get the house sanctioned by the Gram Panchayat, I'm not getting my ration, and I can't even get a labour card for my work as a mason. I am exhausted from running around to all these offices," he added.