New voters in 20 states, where the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has been completed, will no longer have to provide details of their parents’ presence on the electoral rolls. The Election Commission has amended Form 6 to allow applicants in these states to submit the form without the additional SIR-linked declaration seeking details of parents and grandparents. However, in states where SIR is still underway, new voters will continue to be required to submit the declaration.
The move comes days after reports of internal objections within the three-member poll panel over changes made to Form 6. Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had reportedly raised objections to the addition of the declaration, with internal records
cited by The Indian Express showing that they questioned its legality in the absence of an amendment to the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960.
The EC, however, has maintained that its decisions on SIR and Form 6 were unanimously approved by all three commissioners. In a clarification issued on September 26, the poll panel said the SIR declaration attached to Form 6 had been upheld by the Supreme Court and that the forms prescribed under the 1960 Rules would be used during periods when SIR is not underway.
What Has Changed?
Earlier, a new voter applying for inclusion in the electoral roll was not required to provide details of their parents or grandparents from previous SIR rolls.
That additional requirement was introduced for Form 6 applications during the SIR exercise. Applicants were required to provide information to establish their linkage with earlier electoral rolls, including details concerning their parents or grandparents.
With SIR completed in a state, the additional declaration will no longer be required for new voter applications there.
The EC has said SIR has already been completed in 20 states and Union Territories, including Bihar and West Bengal. Young and first-time voters, as well as people whose names were left out during SIR or subsequently, can apply for inclusion through continuous updation.
What Happens In States Where SIR Is Ongoing?
The requirement will continue in states and Union Territories where the SIR exercise is still underway.
New voters applying for enrolment in these areas will have to submit Form 6 along with the SIR-related declaration, including the details required to establish their linkage with the previous electoral roll.
This creates a distinction between voter enrolment during an ongoing SIR exercise and enrolment during the period of continuous updation after SIR has been completed.
EC’s Clarification
The Election Commission says there has been no change in Form 6, whether during SIR or in the non-SIR period. “The Declaration Form was an additional document which was asked for in states/UTs, wherever SIR was conducted as per SIR order dated June 24, 2025. This was as per the unanimous decision of the Commission at that point of time. As per the press note of the commission released on September 26, 2026, for all states/UTs where SIR has been completed and where it is yet to start, there shall be no requirement of the Declaration Form,” it said.
Form 6 Was At Centre Of EC Dissent
The Form 6 controversy was one of the issues at the centre of reported differences between the CEC and the two Election Commissioners.
According to The Indian Express, the additional declaration was introduced on the ECINET portal despite objections recorded by Sandhu and Joshi. The two commissioners had argued that the statutory Form 6 could not be altered through an administrative or software change without amending the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960.
The controversy was not limited to Form 6. The two commissioners were reported to have raised objections on several issues connected to the SIR exercise, including addition and deletion of voters, the functioning of the ECINET system and access to electoral-roll data.
The EC subsequently rejected the suggestion of a policy-level split, saying that internal checks and differing views were part of the functioning of a multi-member constitutional body and that final decisions had been unanimous.
Form 6 is the statutory application used by eligible citizens to seek inclusion in the electoral roll. The additional SIR declaration had become a contentious issue because it required first-time voters to provide information linked to earlier electoral rolls.
The rollback means that once SIR is over in a state, applicants will return to the standard Form 6 procedure rather than having to furnish the additional SIR-linked family information.
/images/ppid_59c68470-image-179056752606289106.webp)
