India news: Election body opens door for voter reinclusion

The Election Commission of India on Tuesday said that voters whose names were deleted during Special Intensive Revision (SIR) can use Form 6 for inclusion in electoral rolls.

The poll body also assured that no action would be taken against people using Form 6 for re-inclusion in rolls.

The Election Commission's clarification comes as Form 6 requires applicants to declare that they are seeking inclusion in the electoral roll for the first time.

The required declaration in Form 6 had become a bone of contention after a section argued that making deleted voters submit this for re-inclusion was like forcing them to give a false declaration.

Protesters accuse India's government of rigging voter rolls

The SIR, which has resulted in the deletion of millions of voters across India, has spurred a massive controversy with the opposition alleging vote theft by the ruling Narendra Modi-led government.

The Congress Party was quick to call the latest EC communication "another deceptive word game to cover up a flawed process asking voters to make a false declaration."

No amount of damage control can fix this "flawed process," and SIR needs to be stopped, Congress Party leader Jairam Ramesh said, adding, "each damage control attempt shows how badly designed the SIR process is."

Hello! This is Midhat from DW's New Delhi Bureau, bringing you the biggest headlines from India.

The Election Commission of India has made way for the reinclusion of voters deleted during the mass voter roll revision exercise through Form 6.

After weeks of protests by the youth and the opposition in the capital over election irregularities, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is holding rallies in multiple states in India against what the party describes as attempts to create political instability and disrupt democratic processes.

Meanwhile, in Andhra Pradesh, Cyclone Murasu has killed two people while leaving a trail of destruction.