This requirement has been added to the online version of Form 6, as per EC officials.
Form 6 is the designated application form for first-time voters, newly eligible citizens, and those seeking re-enrolment after having their names removed from the electoral rolls.
New declaration added to Form 6
As per EC officials, applicants can no longer submit Form 6 online without filling out a new declaration section, PTI reported. This declaration requires applicants to indicate whether they or their parents were included in the electoral rolls created during the prior SIR exercise.
This requirement has been implemented via administrative instructions, although the official form has yet to be updated through a gazette notification.
What applicants need to declare
The declaration prompts applicants to specify whether their own name, a parent’s name, or a grandparent’s name, or none of these, appeared in the electoral rolls from the previous SIR exercise, as reported by India Today.
Those choosing the first two options must furnish details like the Assembly constituency, polling station, and serial number from the previous electoral roll. Applicants lacking this information may opt for the third choice, although the portal does not clarify its consequences.
Why the change was introduced
An EC official noted that the declaration was initially implemented during the Bihar Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise and has since been adopted for voter registration in other states and Union Territories where similar revisions have taken place.
“Daily SIR bulletins from Bihar showcased the form completed with declarations,” an EC official was quoted as saying by PTI. The declaration aids in linking new applicants with existing electoral records, potentially reducing the number of supporting documents needed during voter registration.
Part of wider electoral roll revision
This new requirement comes as the Election Commission carries out Special Intensive Revision exercises nationwide to identify eligible voters and eliminate duplicate, deceased, shifted, absent, and foreign electors from voter lists.
The exercise has already been completed in states like Bihar, West Bengal, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu, while it is ongoing in several other states and Union Territories.
