Form 6 SIR: EC tells Supreme Court no prosecution for deleted voters who re-apply, if not enrolled elsewhere
The Commission said chief electoral officers have been asked to publicise the clarification in local languages, with online submission available on ECINET.
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Voters who file Form 6 after their names were left out of a draft roll during the Special Intensive Revision will not face prosecution merely because they were enrolled before, the Election Commission has told the Supreme Court. In an affidavit, the poll panel offered the Form 6 SIR clarification to remove fear among deleted voters, PTI reported on Saturday.
Form 6 SIR: what the Election Commission’s affidavit says
Quoting the affidavit, ThePrint’s copy of the PTI report said the Commission “has clarified that no prosecution will be launched against anyone for filing Form 6 merely on the ground that the applicant/elector was previously enrolled in the electoral roll(s) prior to the SIR”. There is one condition. The applicant must not be already enrolled in any other Parliamentary or Assembly Constituency, and the declaration must otherwise be in accordance with law.
A communication dated 6 November 2026 carried the directions to the Chief Electoral Officers of states and Union Territories where the SIR is ongoing, the affidavit said. Officers must give the clarification wide publicity in local languages. ECINET will offer online submission with an e-sign.
Why voters feared action under the Representation of the People Act
Some applicants feared charges under Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, since they had appeared in earlier rolls. Form 6 is meant for first-time voter registration, Scroll reported. By the poll panel’s own account, such voters believed filing it “would amount to making a false declaration and render them liable for prosecution”. SY Quraishi, a former Chief Election Commissioner, had said deleted voters cannot fill Form 6 because it is only for new voters.
Key dates and numbers
- 6 November 2026: date of the Commission’s communication to chief electoral officers, per ThePrint.
- 26 October: when the apex court verbally assured that voters would not face prosecution for filing Form 6, per Scroll.
- 28 October: when the bench verbally asked why the Commission was telling previously enrolled voters to use Form 6, per Scroll.
- Nearly 3 crore of about 9 crore: Maharashtra voters a petitioner said were deleted after the draft rolls, per Scroll citing Live Law.
Background: The Special Intensive Revision in court
On 19 October, the Delhi High Court called a voter’s fear of a false-declaration charge “misplaced”, because the direction to file Form 6 had come from the Commission. A week later, on 26 October, the apex court gave a verbal assurance of no prosecution, Scroll reported, citing Live Law. Defending the revision, the Commission has said it was authorised by law, that its orders were approved unanimously by all three members, and that no changes were made to the statutory Form 6.
NIS has covered the revision in Uttarakhand: over 8 lakh names deleted in the SIR can re-enrol before the 2027 polls, and the draft voter list names 72.78 lakh electors.
What happens next
No hearing date for the affidavit appears in the reports reviewed. Deleted voters in states where the SIR is ongoing can now re-apply without the prosecution fear, as long as they are not enrolled in another constituency. That is the practical effect of the Form 6 SIR clarification.
Deleted voters had hesitated to file Form 6 because it is meant for first-time registration and some feared a false-declaration charge. The Commission's written assurance to the Supreme Court gives them a clear route to re-enrol, with one condition: they must not be enrolled elsewhere. The court's next hearing will show whether it accepts the clarification.