Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha has accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led Punjab government of political vendetta after his name was marked as “shifted” in the state’s draft electoral roll published during the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) Special Intensive Revision (SIR).
Chadha, who joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in April 2026 after leaving AAP, said his voter registration was in Mohali and questioned why he had been classified as shifted. He also cited ECI guidelines concerning public representatives whose names had previously been flagged.
AAP has rejected the allegation, saying the electoral-roll revision is an ECI exercise and the state government has no role in deciding individual voter entries. The controversy comes as Punjab’s draft roll records more than 20.66 lakh entries excluded following the house-to-house enumeration exercise.
With claims and objections open until September 12, Chadha has said he is pursuing the remedies available under the SIR process, while the final electoral roll is scheduled to be published in October.
‘Shifted’ Status Sparks Row
Chadha raised the issue in a post on X on September 3, saying, “I am a sitting Rajya Sabha MP from Punjab, with my voter ID registered in Mohali, Punjab. Yet my name has been classified as ‘shifted’ in the draft electoral rolls.” He questioned who marked his name as shifted, who verified the classification and who processed it at a higher level.
Chadha alleged that officials involved in the electoral revision could face political pressure because their transfers and postings are controlled by the state administration. He argued that the development “does not seem like a mere clerical mistake” and described it as a case of political vendetta.
Chadha also pointed to Paragraph 4(d) of the ECI’s SIR guidelines, which provides for names of certain public representatives and other prominent individuals whose records had previously been flagged to be included in the draft roll so that supporting documents can be collected during the claims-and-objections period.
However, whether that provision applies to Chadha’s particular electoral record depends on the underlying records and the circumstances of his classification.
AAP Rejects Political Vendetta
AAP has pushed back against Chadha’s allegations, maintaining that the SIR is an Election Commission-led exercise and that the Punjab government does not decide which individual voters are included or excluded from electoral rolls.
The party has also raised questions about Chadha’s voter-registration circumstances, alleging that he had sought to shift his registration to Delhi and was now attempting to blame the Punjab government for the outcome.
Reports have also quoted a senior Election Commission functionary as saying there was no back-channel effort to include Chadha’s name in Delhi’s voter list. The wider SIR exercise provides important context. Punjab had 2,14,61,043 registered electors as of June 9, while 1,93,94,408 electors 90.37% of the electorate submitted enumeration forms during the house-to-house exercise held between June 25 and August 3.
The draft roll subsequently excluded 20,66,635 entries, including 9,44,131 classified as permanently shifted, 5,74,568 as deceased, 4,12,715 as untraceable and 1,19,145 as duplicate entries. These classifications are part of a draft process and do not, by themselves, establish that the affected voters have been permanently removed.
Claims Process Holds Key
The timing of the controversy is significant because the draft electoral roll is not the final voter list. The ECI’s process allows citizens to raise claims and objections between August 13 and September 12. Voters seeking inclusion can use Form 6, while other forms are available for objections and corrections.
The claims and objections are scheduled to be disposed of before the final electoral roll is published in October. Chadha has acknowledged that his name remains subject to this process and said he is already pursuing the remedies available under the SIR guidelines.
The dispute also follows Chadha’s politically significant exit from AAP. He joined the BJP in April 2026 along with six other AAP Rajya Sabha MPs, a move that dramatically altered the party’s strength in the Upper House. Chadha has linked the voter-roll issue to what he describes as retaliation against former AAP members who switched sides. AAP has rejected that political interpretation.
At this stage, there is no independent finding establishing that the Punjab government instructed officials to mark Chadha’s name as shifted. Equally, the final electoral authorities’ decision on his individual claim is still pending.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
Electoral rolls are the foundation of democratic participation, and every voter whether a political leader, public servant or ordinary citizen deserves a process that is transparent, impartial and open to correction. Allegations of political interference should be investigated through the appropriate constitutional and electoral mechanisms rather than allowed to become another source of partisan confrontation.
At the same time, political parties and public representatives have a responsibility to distinguish between an allegation, an administrative error and an established finding, particularly when millions of voter records are undergoing scrutiny.
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