The Election Commission of India (ECI) has dismissed allegations made by Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi as “misleading”, after the Congress leader accused Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar of “illegally and unilaterally” modifying Form 6 during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Core of the Controversy:
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The Allegation: Rahul Gandhi claimed that the Supreme Court’s recent remarks proved beyond doubt that the CEC altered Form 6 without proper authorization to include a new declaration requiring applicants to state whether they or their parents were mapped in the previous SIR.
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The ECI’s Defense: Responding via social media, the poll body defended its September 26 press note, maintaining that the overarching framework for the SIR in Bihar (initiated on June 24, 2025) was issued with the unanimous approval of the Commission and was previously upheld by the Supreme Court on May 27, 2026.
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The Supreme Court’s Stance: The political row flared up after a Supreme Court bench, headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, explicitly clarified during a hearing that “any modified Form 6 has not been approved by us.” The court stated it would examine official records to determine exactly who authorized the modifications to the online form.
While the ECI maintains its actions were backed by valid statutory processes and previous court rulings, the Supreme Court’s decision to scrutinize the records behind the Form 6 changes has fueled an intense political clash between the Opposition and the poll panel.
