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The Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021, which seeks to link electoral rolls with the Aadhaar ecosystem to weed out duplication, was passed in the Lok Sabha on Monday amid protests by Opposition.

The Bill allows electoral registration officers to ask for the Aadhaar number of expectant voters. The Bill also allows linking of electoral roll data with the Aadhaar and proposes for substitution of the word 'wife' with the word 'spouse' making the statutes gender neutral in the Representation of the People Act, 1951.

Opposition parties led by Congress opposed the Bill, saying it will infringe the fundamental rights of citizens. They also alleged that the Bill will violate the Supreme Court judgment on Aadhaar and demanded the Bill be sent to a Standing Committee.

Introducing the Bill, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said the legislation will end bogus voting in the country and make the electoral process more credible.

Rijiju introduced the Bill even as MPs from the Congress, DMK and TMC were standing in the well of the House, shouting slogans against the government.