Chandigarh/New Delhi | Rajya Sabha MP from Punjab Raghav Chadha on Thursday said that his name has been marked as "shifted" in the draft electoral rolls despite his voter ID being registered in Mohali, accusing the AAP government of using the electoral machinery for political vendetta.
The AAP hit back, accusing Chadha of trying to get his voter registration made in Delhi through a "backdated process", and attempting to put the entire blame on the Punjab government.
A senior Election Commission functionary, however, rejected the claim of back channel efforts to include Chaddha's name in Delhi's voter list, saying, "There was and there is no such move whatsoever." Chadha's name has been classified as "shifted" in the draft electoral rolls prepared after the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in Punjab.
"The AAP government in Punjab has now taken its politics of revenge to the draft electoral rolls. 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," Chadha said in a post on X.
"This does not seem like a mere clerical mistake. This is a clear case of political vendetta," he alleged.
Chadha, who switched sides from the AAP to the BJP in April, said he was in the process of availing remedies provided under the SIR guidelines.
"Thankfully, these are only the draft rolls, not the final rolls. Names are corrected during the 'claims and objections' process, which is ongoing. The final rolls will be published in October. I am already in the process of availing the remedies provided under the SIR guidelines," the former Delhi minister said.
He also questioned who marked him as "shifted", who verified the classification and who processed it at a higher level, alleging that officials of the Punjab government were involved in the process.
"Who marked me as 'shifted'? An official of the AAP government. Who verified that classification? Again, an officer of the AAP government. Who processed it at a higher level? Once again, the same AAP government's official," Chadha alleged.
He claimed that from the booth-level officer (BLO) to the chief electoral officer of the state, every operational level of the SIR exercise is staffed by Punjab government officials.
"The BLO is ordinarily a junior Punjab government employee. The AEROs, EROs and DEOs in between are Punjab government officials. At the top is a Punjab-cadre IAS officer serving as the chief electoral officer," he said.
Such officials are susceptible to political pressure as their transfers, postings and careers are controlled by the state government, he claimed.
"These officials know that the AAP government controls their transfers, postings and careers once their electoral duty ends. They know who can transfer them and who can make their lives difficult. This is how the AAP government applies political pressure on state officials to execute political revenge," he alleged.
He also said that ever since he left the "corrupt" Aam Aadmi Party, its leadership has been seething with anger.
"The AAP has unleashed the Punjab Police and the administrative machinery against those of us who refused to remain silent. The other MPs who left the AAP and joined the BJP have also been targeted by the Punjab government. This wrongful classification is only the latest act of that political vendetta," he said.
Chadha also cited Paragraph 4(d) of the Election Commission's detailed SIR guidelines, which, according to him, provides for a "protected list" of public representatives.
"This includes judges, MPs and MLAs. It states: 'All names of members of judiciary, public representatives, holders of declared offices and personalities from fields of arts, culture, journalism, sports and public services, etc., earlier flagged in the electoral database, are to be included in the draft electoral rolls, so that necessary documents can also be collected during the period of claims and objections'," Chadha said.
"I am a sitting Member of Parliament from Punjab. If at all my name was flagged, Paragraph 4(d) required my inclusion in the draft rolls. The instruction was not overlooked. It was willfully violated in my case.
"AAP may run the Punjab government, but the draft rolls are not its private property," he said.
Countering Chadha, a Punjab AAP spokesperson said the Election Commission conducts SIR, not the state government.
"Punjab government has no role in deciding whose name is included or deleted from the electoral rolls," he said.
"It is a matter of public record that Raghav Chadha has been living in Delhi, and not in Punjab. If he no longer resides in Punjab, maintaining or shifting his voter registration was his own responsibility. He cannot now blame the AAP or the Punjab government for the deletion of a voter entry," the spokesperson said.
He also claimed that the AAP received information from Election Commission sources that Chadha was trying to get his voter registration made in Rajinder Nagar, Delhi, through "a backdated process".
"If any such backdated or unlawful exercise took place, it must be investigated, and the entire truth be brought before the public. If the BJP or anyone else facilitated any such backdated entry, we will pursue the matter to its logical conclusion and expose the truth," the spokesperson said.
The EC official quoted above, however, pointed out that non-inclusion of Chaddha's name was violative of the SIR order, citing Paragraph 4(d) of the SIR guidelines on "protected list" for high-profile individuals and public representatives
