EC issues clarification on SIR

NEW DELHI: Congress leader Pawan Khera on Sunday questioned the Election Commission‘s response to concerns over Form 6, claiming that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls was based on a change to the form that could not have been made without amending the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960.Speaking to news agency PTI, Khera said the rules could not be changed without being amended in Parliament and questioned whether the Election Commission had addressed the objections raised by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi.“The 1960 Rules cannot be changed without being amended in Parliament. The biggest point of difference between Sandhu ji and Joshi with Gyanesh Kumar was this, and did we receive the answer to it today?” Khera said.

Questions Form 6 changes

Khera alleged that the SIR exercise was based on an “illegally changed” Form 6 and questioned the validity of elections conducted in Bengal and Bihar on the basis of the exercise.“The entire SIR is based on a Form 6 that was changed illegally. The SIR that arose from that illegal form has also become illegal. The elections held in Bengal and Bihar based on that illegal SIR have also become illegal. Did we get an answer on this?” he said.

What is the Form 6 row?

The controversy centres on the requirement for new voters to provide details linking themselves or their parents or grandparents to electoral rolls from the previous SIR.According to Indian Express reports, Election Commissioners Joshi and Sandhu had objected to incorporating the requirement into Form 6, arguing that the statutory form could not be altered without an amendment to the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960.

The Election Commission, however, has maintained that there was “no change” to Form 6 and that the SIR-related requirement was an additional declaration prescribed under its SIR orders. The poll panel has also said the declaration attached to Form 6 for SIR had been upheld by the Supreme Court.