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New Delhi: The Election Commission has ordered a special drive to enrol voters who were left out of the electoral rolls after the completion of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), along with first-time and young electors – a move that comes after sustained Opposition pressure amid the continuing row over voter deletions and changes to Form 6.

“Special drive in States/UTs after completion of Special Intensive Revision (SIR). Commission has instructed to undertake a special drive for enrolment of left-out and first time/young electors,” the ECI said in a post on X.

The drive will cover voters whose names appeared in pre-SIR rolls but are missing from the current rolls, as well as eligible first-time and young voters who have not yet been enrolled, according to the Commission.

The announcement comes at a time when the poll body is under trememdous scrutiny as the Oppositon, led by Congress, has been alleging that changes to online Form 6 created additional hurdles for new voters, particularly those belonging to Gen Z.

Why Are First-Time, Gen Z Voters At The Centre Of The Row?

Form 6 is the statutory application used by people seeking inclusion in the electoral roll. In July, the online version on the ECINet portal was changed to include an additional declaration linked to previous SIR rolls. Applicants were asked whether their name, or that of a parent or grandparent, appeared on an earlier SIR roll.

Congress has alleged that the additional requirement placed an unnecessary burden on first-time voters who could not themselves have appeared on earlier electoral rolls.

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh had said, “A new mandatory section was added (in Form 6) that asks if your parents/grandparents were in the previous SIR – creating a barrier for first time Gen Z voters. The change is completely illegal.”

Ramesh had also questioned the ECI’s decision to organise special enrolment camps for young voters in September, calling it a “panic reaction”.

“Late night yesterday, a panicked Election Commission directed officers to organise special enrolment camps for young voters and give them ‘wide publicity’ through social media. But the CEC himself had earlier made it virtually impossible to add young voters through a blatantly illegal and unconstitutional change to Form 6,” he had said.

The Congress later accused the ECI of avoiding questions over what it described as the “targeted disenfranchisement” of Gen Z voters.

Ramesh said the ECI had avoided “questions regarding the deliberate targeting of Gen Z voters”, alleging that the Form 6 changes had placed “an unfair burden on them to find and disclose their parents and/or grandparents’ details.”

Rahul Gandhi’s Form 6 Question

The issue has also been raised by Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, who questioned who within the ECI ordered changes to Form 6 and asked about the role of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), which manages the ECINet backend.

Gandhi alleged that the online Form 6 was changed “illegally” and asked who at the ECI ordered TCS to make the alteration.

The additional declaration has since been removed from ECINet in states where the SIR process has been completed, according to reports.

Congress Says ECI Is Now In ‘Damage Control’

Earlier, Congress linked the special drive to the larger SIR controversy and accused the poll panel of trying to address a problem after the revision exercise has already been completed.

The Opposition’s criticism has centred on two connected questions: whether eligible voters were left out during SIR, and whether the Form 6 changes made it harder for new voters to enter the rolls.

“Form 6 changes were introduced by the CEC unconstitutionally in mid-July 2026 to remove Gen Z voters from the electoral roll. Clearly, the move was orchestrated by the PM-HM duo,” Congress leader Jairam Ramesh had said as the controversy came to the fore.

The latest ECI move has therefore brought the issue of first-time voters back into focus, particularly after Opposition parties repeatedly highlighted the potential impact of the Form 6 changes on young and Gen Z electors.

What The ECI Says

The Election Commission has rejected the broader allegations and maintained that the SIR process followed statutory procedures. It has also said that young and first-time voters who were not included can apply for enrolment through continuous updation.

Amid the controversy, ECI officials said 3.27 crore electors aged 18–28 had been added to the electoral rolls since SIR began in June 2025.

The latest special drive puts the spotlight back on the question of who may have been left out – and whether first-time voters faced additional hurdles during the SIR exercise.

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