1 day ago
EC Removes Parent Details For New Voters After SIR
The Election Commission has changed the form used by people applying to become voters.
In 20 states and Union Territories, new voters no longer need to give information about their parents or grandparents if a voter-list review is finished there.
This review is called the Special Intensive Revision, or SIR.
In places where the review is still happening, applicants must still provide those details.
The information was meant to show a connection to older voter lists.
Young voters and people whose names were left out can apply through continuous updating after SIR is complete.
The change came after reports that two election commissioners had objected to the added requirement.
The Election Commission says all three commissioners approved its decisions.
New voters in 20 states and Union Territories where SIR is complete no longer need to provide parents’ or grandparents’ electoral-roll details.
The Election Commission amended Form 6 to remove the additional SIR-linked declaration in those areas.
Applicants in states where SIR is still underway must continue submitting the declaration and linkage details.
The change follows reports that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi objected internally to adding the declaration.
The EC says its decisions on SIR and Form 6 were unanimously approved and that the declaration was upheld by the Supreme Court.
- Who
- The Election Commission, new and first-time voters, and applicants seeking inclusion in electoral rolls.
- What
- The EC amended Form 6 so applicants in areas where SIR is complete do not need to provide parents’ or grandparents’ electoral-roll details.
- Where
- It applies in 20 states and Union Territories where SIR has been completed, including Bihar and West Bengal; the requirement remains elsewhere where SIR is ongoing.
- When
- The change was reported after a clarification issued on September 26; the articles do not specify the year.
- Why
- The additional declaration was intended to establish applicants’ links with previous electoral rolls during the SIR exercise.
Reported Internal Concerns
Election Commission Position
Additional declaration
Reported Internal Concerns
Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi reportedly objected to adding the SIR-linked declaration to Form 6.
Election Commission Position
The EC says the declaration was part of decisions unanimously approved by all three commissioners.
Legal and procedural basis
Reported Internal Concerns
The reported objections raised questions within the commission about changes to the voter-application form.
Election Commission Position
The EC says the declaration was upheld by the Supreme Court and that standard forms under the 1960 Rules apply when SIR is not underway.
Key facts
- Affected areas
- Twenty states and Union Territories where SIR has been completed
- Form changed
- Form 6, used for applications to be included in the electoral roll
- Parent details
- No longer required in areas where SIR has been completed
- Ongoing SIR
- Applicants must continue submitting the SIR-linked declaration where the exercise is underway
- Examples of completed areas
- Bihar and West Bengal
- Continuous updating
- Young, first-time, and previously excluded voters can apply after SIR through continuous updation
- EC clarification
- Issued on September 26; the EC said the decisions were unanimously approved
Sources
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