Punjab MP Raghav Chadha’s name added to Delhi electoral rolls; AAP seeks clarification

After BJP Rajya Sabha MP from Punjab Raghav Chadha’s name was deleted from the Punjab electoral rolls, it has now been added to the Delhi voters list, poll officials said on Tuesday (September 8). The development comes amid the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the national capital.

Chadha’s name had been included in the Absent, Shifted, Deceased and Duplicate (ASDD) list during the SIR exercise in Mohali, Punjab, with “permanently shifted” marked against it.

However, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders in Delhi alleged that Chadha’s name was added to the electoral rolls of the Rajinder Nagar Assembly constituency without following the due procedure.

‘Procedure followed’

Poll officials said Chadha's name was added to the electoral rolls of Delhi through the update process. His name was removed from the rolls of Punjab, from where he was sent to the Rajya Sabha by his previous party AAP.

Also read: Raghav Chadha cries vendetta over voter roll deletion; AAP says don’t blame us

"A total of 700 forms for inclusion of names in the electoral rolls were approval by the electoral registration officers (EROs) in 70 Assembly constituencies in Delhi till Tuesday. Chadha's name was among them," said an official at the office of Delhi Chief Electoral Officer.

The electoral roll of Delhi was frozen on June 16 for the preparation of SIR and remained in the frozen state till August 31, when the draft electoral rolls were published, said a Delhi CEO statement.

Forms under process

During this period, approximately 2.14 lakh Forms-6 for new voters (besides Form-7 and 8) were submitted by the electors. Also, during the period of claims and objections, another 25,011 Forms-6 have been submitted by the electors in eight days (till September 7) for the inclusion of their names in the final electoral rolls to be published on November 4, it said.

All Forms-6 submitted by electors for the inclusion of their names during the pre-SIR period or during the period of claims and objections are under process along with Forms-7 & 8. Once the forms are approved, additions, deletions and modifications will be reflected in the electoral database as the case may be, it said.

Additions of electors will be published as a supplementary list on November 4, said the Delhi CEO office.

AAP seeks clarification

The AAP questioned how Chadha's name was added to Delhi's draft electoral roll after the list for the concerned polling part showed 746 voters and sought an explanation from the Election Commission on the process followed.

AAP Delhi unit chief Saurabh Bharadwaj said Chadha's name appeared as the 747th voter in the Rajinder Nagar electoral roll despite the draft roll published on August 31 showing 746 voters.

Bharadwaj said the entry showed the name of Raghav Chadha, son of Sunil Chadha, aged 37, with serial number 747 in the electoral roll of the area.

Also read: Why Raghav Chadha lost nearly 1 million followers in 24 hours after joining BJP

He questioned how the additional entry came to be made and said the Election Commission should clarify the procedure followed for adding Chadha's name. "If the Election Commission explains this process, we can also tell the same process to the 47 lakh people whose names have been deleted from the draft electoral roll and who are trying to get their names added," Bharadwaj said.

The AAP leader also referred to Chadha's statement on September 3 that he would get his name registered as a voter in Punjab after it was deleted from the state's draft electoral roll.

Raghav Chadha issues statement

Responding to AAP's allegation, Chadha said in a statement, "I seem to be haunting Arvind Kejriwal and the Aam Aadmi Party... Ever since I left the corrupt Aam Aadmi Party, its leadership has been unable to cope with it. They are behaving like a bitter ex who has just been dumped." He further said, "The facts are simple and straightforward. I have followed all applicable ECI guidelines and procedures and availed the prescribed remedies.

"AAP has confused ‘electoral rolls’ with its ‘party membership register.’ It wants to cut out everyone who walks away from Kejriwal and his corrupt AAP."

Also read: AAP-BJP row: Chadha alleges vendetta politics; Mann seeks disqualification of 6 MPs from state

Chadha said he had followed the applicable Election Commission guidelines and procedures and availed the prescribed remedies. "The facts are simple and straightforward. I have followed all applicable ECI guidelines and procedures and availed the prescribed remedies," Chadha said in a statement.

AAP national media in-charge Anurag Dhanda said the EC should clarify whether Chadha's vote had been transferred from Punjab to Delhi and whether his EPIC number was the same as the one in Punjab.

(With agency inputs)