An officers’ union of Indian public sector banks has demanded that the government make it clear to citizens that linking Aadhaar numbers to bank accounts is voluntary till the Supreme Court comes out with a clear directive.

The All India Bank Officers Confederation has also opposed the government’s move asking banks to open Aadhaar enrolment centres at its branches. “Banks are already reeling under acute shortage of staff, and employees and officers are heavily overburdened,” the union said.

“The government should add more to the workforce if it wants to implement Aadhaar-related work in public sector banks,” General Secretary DT Franco said.

On Saturday, the Reserve Bank of India said it was mandatory to link the biometric identity number with bank accounts. The central bank issued a statement dismissing media reports that quoted a reply to a Right to Information query, which had suggested that the RBI had not issued any notification making it compulsory to link Aadhaar with bank accounts.

The union said public sector banks should not be held responsible later for linking the unique numbers and bank accounts, given the Supreme Court’s interim order that Aadhaar should not be made mandatory.

The union was referring to the court’s landmark ruling from August, when it declared privacy as a fundamental right protected under Article 21 of the Constitution. The Supreme Court’s verdict will determine whether Aadhaar can be made compulsory for access to government schemes. The question of whether Aadhaar violates this fundamental right will be taken up by a five-judge Constitution bench.