Changes to Form 6 not made by court; post-retirement immunity to CEC not given to even judges: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Monday (October 5, 2026) distanced itself from the controversial alterations made to Form 6 for registering new voters during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across several States, shifting scrutiny to the Election Commission of India (ECI).

Also Read: Protest against CEC Gyanesh Kumar updated on October 5

“We are making it clear, any modifications to Form 6 have not been made by us,” Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, heading a three-judge Bench, said.

Form 6 is a statutory document provided in the Schedule of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960. Modifications to Form 6 should be done through the proper lawmaking process, and not by unilateral administrative actions.

The alterations in Form 6 included a supplementary declaration form on additional linkage requirements for voter registration. New applicants have to declare whether they, their parents, or their grandparents were registered in the previous SIR electoral rolls. Further, a response to these mapping and linkage questions was made a strict prerequisite for submitting Form 6 applications.

The oral observation was made during the hearing of two petitions demanding the suspension of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over allegations of bias, administrative unilateralism, and procedural overreach during the SIR process.

Also Read: When Election Commission was rocked by internal disputes | Explained

‘Legal immunity’

Justice Joymalya Bagchi pointed to how the CEC and Election Commissioners continue to enjoy immunity from legal proceedings even after demitting office, a protection not available to even judges.