New applicants for electoral rolls must now supply details of their parents’ inclusion in the last Special Intensive Revision exercise. The Election Commission has made this declaration compulsory for online voter registration, according to officials.
The change applies to Form 6, used by first-time voters and others seeking enrolment. Although the form has not been updated via official notification, the requirement was added through administrative instructions and is now mandatory for digital submissions.
Applicants cannot complete the online Form 6 without filling the declaration section. It asks whether the applicant or a parent or grandparent appeared in the previous SIR rolls, with options to select and provide constituency, booth, and serial details if applicable.
The measure began during the Bihar SIR process last June and now applies in states and union territories that have conducted the exercise. Officials note it aids mapping of voters and reduces required supporting documents.
Existing rules already ask for family members’ EPIC numbers. The new step extends this to prior SIR data without a formal change to the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960.
The Commission is expanding SIR efforts nationwide to update lists by removing ineligible entries. Exercises have finished in West Bengal, Bihar, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, with others ongoing. Revised rolls have resulted in many deletions, prompting concerns about effects on new applicants.
