The Congress on Saturday levelled fresh allegations against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, accusing him of creating hurdles for first-time, Gen Z voters.
Congress MP Jairam Ramesh alleged that the Election Commission of India (ECI) had made it harder for young voters to register by introducing a new requirement in Form 6, the application form used to seek inclusion in the electoral roll. The Delhi election office has announced special voter-enrolment camps at colleges, universities and other educational institutions across the city on September 29 and 30. The camps will facilitate enrolment of young voters under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) 2026.
“Late last night, the panicked Election Commission directed officials to set up special enrollment camps for young voters and conduct their “extensive promotion” through social media,” Ramesh said.
This is clearly a massive overreach of jurisdiction by the Election Commission. Such a change can only be made by the central government after giving appropriate notice to Parliament. A statutory form prescribed by law was unilaterally altered by CEC Gyanesh Kumar at the behest of the jittery PM-HM duo,” he added. The Congress MP claimed two Election Commissioners had sought withdrawal of the change.
“The ECI has no authority to amend Form 6. 1950, this power lies solely with the central government, according to the Representation of the People Act. “The form was changed without any amendments to the rules governing Form 6 under the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960.
