No adjudication on new Form 6 while hearing Bihar SIR matter: SC

The Supreme Court on Monday said it has neither approved nor disapproved the new Form 6 and this issue was not adjudicated upon while hearing the matter concerning Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar.

Form 6 is an application through which an eligible person seeks inclusion in the electoral roll.

The observation came from a bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana that was hearing a petition concerning the SIR. The counsel appearing for the petitioner argued that the Election Commission had said that Form 6 was approved by the apex court.

He said the apex court had on October 5 observed that it had not approved any modifications to Form 6, which is being used by the Election Commission during the SIR of electoral rolls in various states.

“There is no adjudication on the new Form 6. That is all we have said,” Justice Bagchi observed, adding that when the matter relating to the SIR in Bihar was heard by it, the issue of new Form 6 was not there. “What the Chief Justice said was that when the Bihar SIR matter was heard by us, the new Form 6 was not there,” Justice Bagchi said, adding that this does not mean it was either approved or disapproved by the top court.

The bench said the plea would be heard along with similar pending petitions relating to SIR which are slated to come up for hearing on October 27.

While hearing a separate plea on October 5, the apex court said it had not approved any modifications to Form 6.

The Election Commission had issued a press release on September 26 suggesting that the apex court had upheld the Form 6 declaration in the May 2026 judgment relating to the Bihar SIR.

The plea, which the apex court heard on October 5, has cited the provisions of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023, particularly Section 18, which provides for decision-making by the EC and says that where there is a difference of opinion, the view of the majority prevails.

One of the main issues the plea raises is the alteration of Form 6, which the people use to register as voters.

It alleges that the requirement relating to ancestral details and link with the previous SIR was introduced through the election panel’s software without the statutory amendment required under the electoral rules.