ECI Submits Counter-Affidavit In SC, Says All SIR Decisions Were Unanimous, Form 6 Not Amended

The Election Commission of India (ECI) submitted a counter‑affidavit to the Supreme Court in response to petitions that sought the removal of the Chief Election Commissioner and restrictions on his duties. In the document, the poll body emphasized that the petition was based solely on a media report and reiterated that every decision related to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls was taken unanimously by the three members of the commission.

The affidavit, signed with the consent of all three commissioners, detailed procedural aspects such as the routing of files through one Election Commissioner, then the other, and finally the Chief Election Commissioner, with urgent approvals possible electronically. It referenced a July 28 order on work allocation issued by an Additional Secretary on deputation, which was subsequently halted after the commissioners wrote to the Cabinet Secretary on July 30. From October 21, the online application process was split into Form 6 and a separate declaration to mirror the paper‑based system, and the commission stressed that only the Central Government can amend Form 6.

The ECI’s response comes amid legal challenges questioning its internal notes and the handling of voter records during the SIR process. Voters whose names could not be linked to older records will not be automatically summoned for hearings; instead, Booth Level Officers will visit homes to collect documents, and hearings will be limited to special cases, preferably conducted online. A committee comprising experts from the Indian Institutes of Technology has been formed to examine compliance with electoral rules, and the commission warned that any official issuing orders beyond their authority would face action.