The ECI changed its requirement for the SIR process. Because the change came after many applicants had already filed Form‑6 in Telangana, tens of thousands of applications were rejected for missing a declaration form that was later deemed unnecessary.
Key Developments
- ECI announced that the declaration form is not required in states where SIR is not active, but the notice arrived after the pre‑SIR filing period in Telangana.
- Out of 5,20,331 pre‑SIR applications received between 1 Jan 2026 and 14 Jun 2026, only 3,22,785 were accepted by 28 Oct 2026.
- 1,92,574 applications (≈37%) were rejected for not attaching the declaration form.
- Remaining 4,972 forms are still pending processing.
Important Facts
The Registration of Electors Rules require that enrolment claims be displayed at the office of the ERO and disposed of within a week. This timeline was not followed; the pending pre‑SIR forms are now being processed together with those from the Enumeration, Claims & Objections, and post‑objection phases.
The burden of collecting missing declaration forms has been shifted to BLOs. BLOs were already overstretched after failing to distribute enumeration forms, which led to the removal of 73.39 lakh electors from draft rolls under categories such as Absent, Shifted, Dead, and Duplicate.
In addition to door‑to‑door collection of documents, BLOs are required to upload the data on ERONET software, further stretching their capacity.
Exam Relevance
This episode illustrates several themes that frequently appear in the UPSC GS2 (Polity) paper:
- Administrative challenges in implementing electoral reforms.
- Role and powers of constitutional bodies like the ECI.
- Impact of procedural lapses on citizens’ fundamental right to vote.
- Inter‑linkage between statutory rules (Registration of Electors Rules) and ground‑level execution.
Understanding these aspects helps candidates answer questions on electoral governance, citizen‑state relations, and administrative accountability.
Way Forward
- Issue a retroactive clarification that pre‑SIR applicants need not submit the declaration form, and process those applications immediately.
- Strengthen the capacity of BLOs through additional staffing and training.
- Introduce a digital pre‑submission portal for declaration documents to avoid door‑to‑door collection.
- Ensure strict adherence to the one‑week disposal rule under the Registration of Electors Rules to prevent backlog.
Timely corrective measures will safeguard the right to vote and restore confidence in the electoral enrolment process.