The Election Commission of India has withdrawn the additional SIR-related declaration from Form 6 in states where the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has been completed, days after the full Commission decided the extra declaration would apply only while the exercise was underway.
**What changed**
The additional declaration has been removed from the ECINET app and the Commission's portal, as well as the websites of the respective Chief Electoral Officers. Applicants seeking new enrolment in such states will now fill only the statutory Form 6 prescribed under the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, without the extra SIR-linked declaration.
The decision followed a September 26 meeting of the full Commission comprising Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi.
**A controversial backdrop**
The move comes amid a growing row over the SIR exercise. The Commission had maintained that the declaration had been upheld by the Supreme Court in its judgment on the Bihar SIR, and its September 26 statement said the orders relating to the SIR had the unanimous approval of all three Commissioners.
Opposition parties, which are meeting to launch a major agitation demanding the resignation of the Chief Election Commissioner, said the withdrawal vindicates their "vote chori" charge and their claim of differences among the three Election Commissioners. The controversy intensified after it emerged that Sandhu and Joshi had raised objections to changes made to Form 6.
Form 6 is the statutory form used by eligible citizens to apply for inclusion in the electoral roll. Joshi had objected to the changes on the ground that a form prescribed under the 1960 rules could not be altered without amending the rules, and Sandhu had concurred.
**Sources:** EC Form 6 Move Gives Oppn Fresh Ammunition minutes before INDIA bloc Meet (The Hans India): https://www.thehansindia.com/news/n...nition-minutes-before-india-bloc-meet-1127251
**What changed**
The additional declaration has been removed from the ECINET app and the Commission's portal, as well as the websites of the respective Chief Electoral Officers. Applicants seeking new enrolment in such states will now fill only the statutory Form 6 prescribed under the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, without the extra SIR-linked declaration.
The decision followed a September 26 meeting of the full Commission comprising Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi.
**A controversial backdrop**
The move comes amid a growing row over the SIR exercise. The Commission had maintained that the declaration had been upheld by the Supreme Court in its judgment on the Bihar SIR, and its September 26 statement said the orders relating to the SIR had the unanimous approval of all three Commissioners.
Opposition parties, which are meeting to launch a major agitation demanding the resignation of the Chief Election Commissioner, said the withdrawal vindicates their "vote chori" charge and their claim of differences among the three Election Commissioners. The controversy intensified after it emerged that Sandhu and Joshi had raised objections to changes made to Form 6.
Form 6 is the statutory form used by eligible citizens to apply for inclusion in the electoral roll. Joshi had objected to the changes on the ground that a form prescribed under the 1960 rules could not be altered without amending the rules, and Sandhu had concurred.
**Sources:** EC Form 6 Move Gives Oppn Fresh Ammunition minutes before INDIA bloc Meet (The Hans India): https://www.thehansindia.com/news/n...nition-minutes-before-india-bloc-meet-1127251