The Indian Express and NDTV reported that the Election Commission of India (ECI) has clarified that previously registered voters missing from draft rolls may reapply with Form 6 amid concerns over false-declaration penalties.
The reported Nov. 3 instruction concerns voters left off draft lists during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), an electoral-roll review. It says an electoral registration officer should not initiate action under Section 31 merely because a Form 6 applicant appeared on an earlier roll. According to the reports, the direction applies only if the applicant is not registered in another parliamentary or assembly constituency and the rest of the declaration complies with the law.
Form 6 asks applicants to declare that they are seeking inclusion for the first time, wording that concerned some previously registered voters. Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, provides for up to one year in prison, a fine or both for a knowingly false written declaration connected to an electoral roll.
In an Oct. 14 order involving two petitioners omitted from the rolls after a move, the Delhi High Court called one petitioner’s concern about making a false declaration misplaced. The court said they could submit Form 6 and directed that their applications be processed under the law. It did not order their names restored.
A May 31 ECI notice covering Odisha, Mizoram, Sikkim and Manipur had said existing voters who missed an enumeration deadline could submit Form 6 with a prescribed declaration during the claims and objections period.
Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh criticized the Nov. 3 clarification, arguing that reapplication places the burden on omitted voters. His criticism follows opposition demands over the voter-list review.
