Form 8 must be decided during SIR; deletion without hearing denies vote: Bombay HC

The Hindu · Chinmay Gaikwad · 2026-11-06 07:41 UTC

Bombay HC rules Form 8 must be decided during Special Intensive Revision; deletion without hearing violates voters' rights and orders restore names.

The Goa bench of The Bombay High Court held that removal of an elector’s name from the roll without a hearing denies the citizen the right to vote.

The Bench delivered the judgment on a petition by six members of the Salgaonkar family that an Electoral Registration Officer must decide a Form 8 application while Special Intensive Revision is underway. The Bench also ordered the Election Commission of India to restore the six names, and to set aside the rejection of their Form 8 applications.

The judgment, delivered by a Bench of Justice Valmiki Menezes and Justice Amit Jamsandekar, records that Section 22 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950 and Rule 13 of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960 continue to operate during a revision, whether Intensive or Summary, and that an ERO who receives Form 8 is bound to decide the application rather than refuse it because the revision is underway. The Bench rejected the contention of the ECI that an ERO may refuse Form 8 while revision is underway.

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