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Aadhaar should be led by less glamorous person
-The Economic Times

Almost every fortnight, Nandan Nilekani knocks on the doors of the Reserve Bank to push his case for making Aadhaar an easy gateway to a bank account. He has reached a frontier that, when crossed, could multiply the number of Indians, untouched by high-street banks, to have accounts.

An inexpensive technology to execute this exists: the fingerprint of the person with a 12-digit individual identification number is all a bank's business correspondent needs to verify her name and address from the Aadhaar server and transmit the data to the bank that opens the account; in 15 minutes, a machine that costs Rs 15,000 can spew out a card carrying the account number and the bank's name.

Nilekani is a patient man who has managed to save his baby whenever caught in political cross-fire. His charm, impeccable credentials and backing by powers-that-be may help him convince the RBI. It may take a while, but it's a smaller problem compared to another danger.

It has nothing to do with Nilekani's achievements. It's about how the world is beginning to perceive him. There is a risk that his proximity to the Gandhis, presence at a Youth Congress convention, his perceived political ambition, praise from Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi, and the government's decision to transfer cash subsidy to holders of Aadhaar under the direct benefit scheme may cast a shadow on the ambitious project.

Some of it is unavoidable. As the chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India, Nilekani has to brief Sonia Gandhi, the chairperson of the National Advisory Council, hold meetings with Rahul Gandhi and other Congressmen, and face awaiting photographers.

Unlike the customary "silent period" corporate executives use to avoid publicity — something Nilekani too practised at Infosys— he can't avoid the media glare now. He could even be enjoying it. As one who spearheads the project, and feels strongly about it, it's only natural that he defends Aadhaar when someone questions the concept.

But not always has Nilekani maintained the typical silence of a quiet professional. By hitting out at Arvind Kejriwal in a news channel to claim that Aadhaar is a more effective tool in the battle against corruption than campaigns and new laws, he clubs himself, even if unwillingly, with Manish Tewari and Digvijaya Singh, who minced no words in running down the Jantar Mantar crusaders. In an age of breathless media coverage, such images stick.

A lot of it could be unintended. As someone who has been the poster boy of the Indian IT industry and volunteered to "help" the government, the media will chase him for sound bites even on subjects unconnected to Aadhaar. Occasionally, they will ask him whether he nurtures political ambitions. Nilekani will either deny, or wear his trademark smile. He may get away with the gesture, but it may not help his dream project.

Except for his home state Karnataka, other BJP states haven't welcomed Aadhaar. While the BJP hasn't trashed it, it hasn't found Aadhaar either novel or transformational. This is plain politics as politicians are canny enough to sense that it's one of those projects that can be a meeting point for economics and populism.

All this is happening at a time when India is at the cusp of a mobile-banking boom with banks, telcos and technology providers trying to find solutions that make transactions from handsets less wieldy. These disparate players have to converge with Aadhaar.

It's a long road and it's too late for the Congress to reap the rewards in 2014. Aadhaar must reach a critical mass and receive the backing of the next government to make a meaningful difference. Such support cannot be taken for granted.

The project has taken a political hue and for its progress, Aadhaar should be led by a professional who is perceived to be apolitical — someone as committed as Nilekani but less glamorous; one as hardworking but not as frequently interviewed as Nilekani is.

Before election fever grips the country and Nilekani finds himself more and more photographed with Congress leaders, he should ceremoniously pass on the baton to such a successor.

Those who know Nilekani say that after leaving Infosys, he has never talked about the company where he was CEO and a co-founder. A year from now, he should leave someone else to do the talking for Aadhaar.