• The Supreme Court clarified that it had neither approved nor disapproved the changes made to Form 6 during the SIR of electoral rolls. It said it would now examine them.

• Form 6 is the legal application for entering a name in the electoral roll.
• Source of the form: It is in the Schedule to the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960.
• What it asks: It covers identity, date of birth, place of residence, and declarations on citizenship and place of birth.
• False information: It is punishable under Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950.
• The form already has a fixed list of details, and nothing more is needed to prove eligibility.

• The objection is that the ECI added requirements that the Rules do not contain.
• The add-on: The 24 June 2025 SIR notification attached a Declaration (Annexure D) to Form 6 or Form 8. It sorted applicants by date of birth against the Citizenship Act and asked for documents.
• Who can make rules: Under Section 28 of the 1950 Act, only the Central Government can make rules. So the ECI cannot amend a statutory form on its own.
• Dissent within the ECI: Election Commissioners called the changes “illegal and unauthorised”.
• Citizenship check: The declaration asks about citizenship, but Article 326 only requires a voter to be an adult citizen aged 18 or above.

• Bulk deletion requests: Form 7 is being used to file many deletion applications in States such as Uttarakhand and Karnataka. Action against fake or frivolous filings has been limited.
• Officer access: Reports from West Bengal and Goa say that a central data system stopped Electoral Registration Officers from using their statutory powers.
• Two versions of Form 6: Form 6 with the Declaration continues where the SIR is ongoing. It is used without the Declaration where the SIR is complete.

• Right to vote: Wrongful deletion or exclusion at the enrolment stage affects the right to vote itself.
• Trust in the ECI: Its authority under Article 324 to supervise elections depends on public trust.
• Role of the Court: The Court has yet to decide whether the ECI can add such a declaration, so the rolls stay under a cloud.

Prelims Pointers

• Form 6 is for inclusion of a name; Form 7 is for objecting to a name or seeking its deletion.
• Article 324 gives the ECI superintendence of elections; Article 326 provides adult suffrage.
• Section 21(2) of the RP Act, 1950 covers the special revision of electoral rolls.