Election Commission adds parental SIR query in online voter form, bypassing statutory amendment process

For the first time, the Election Commission's online version of Form 6, the electors' registration form, now includes a new section that asks applicants about their parents' status in the last Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. This change has been made on the EC's ECINET portal, but the statutory form itself has not been amended, raising questions about legal procedures.

The move comes at a time when over 5.58 crore names have been deleted from electoral rolls in 10 states and three Union Territories during the SIR that began last year. In West Bengal alone, over 27 lakh electors were deleted during adjudication and were unable to vote in the April elections while their appeals remain pending before tribunals.

The new section, described as an un-lettered 'declaration form,' is inserted between parts J and K of Form 6. It asks applicants to choose from three options: 'my name exists in Electoral Roll of last SIR; my parents name (Father, Mother, Grandfather, Grandmother) exists in the electoral roll of last SIR; neither my name nor my parents name exists in the electoral roll of last SIR.'

If the applicant selects the first or second option, they are required to provide the Assembly constituency, booth number, and serial number from the last SIR. If they cannot find these details, they must select the third option. The portal does not specify the consequences of selecting the last option.

Notably, the downloadable version of Form 6 intended for physical submission does not include this new declaration. The online form is visible for all states and UTs where the SIR has concluded or is ongoing, except for Bihar, which had its SIR in June 2024, and Assam, where the EC decided not to hold the SIR.

While the new section is not marked mandatory, the user cannot proceed with submission without completing it. This has raised concerns about the legal basis for the change, as Section 28 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, empowers only the Central government to amend the rules, including changes to forms.

The Form 6 requirement originates from the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, under the RP Act, which itself derives from Article 326 of the Constitution. Article 326 guarantees every adult citizen the right to enrol as an elector if ordinarily resident in a constituency and not disqualified.

Historically, changes to Form 6 have required an amendment to the Act by Parliament or a notification of rules by the Law and Justice Ministry. Two former senior EC officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that any change to the form would require at least an amendment to the rules.

The EC had sought similar details during the SIR enumeration forms for existing electors in 12 states/UTs last year and in 19 states/UTs this year. However, the online Form 6 for new electors has not been amended through the proper process, as no gazette notification from the Law Ministry since June 2024 has been found.

This development raises questions about procedural compliance and the potential impact on new voters, especially those whose parents were deleted from rolls. The EC has not commented on the discrepancy between the online and physical forms or the legal basis for the new requirement.