BJP Rajya Sabha MP from Punjab Raghav Chadha's name has unexpectedly appeared on Delhi's voter list amid the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR), just days after he alleged that his name was removed from Punjab's draft electoral rolls due to "political vendetta". While Delhi's draft electoral rolls were published on August 31, Chadha's name was among around 700 names added across the capital on September 8, PTI reported. The development has raised questions about how his name was added after the draft rolls had already been released.
The AAP alleged that Chadha had illegally registered himself as a voter in Delhi, while the Rajya Sabha MP hit back at his former party, accusing it of acting like a "dumped lover". Chadha rejected the allegations and maintained that he had followed all Election Commission procedures.
Delhi election officials told PTI that Chadha's name was added through the regular updation process. The former AAP MP had been registered as a voter in Punjab since 2024. His name now appears in the electoral rolls of the Rajinder Nagar Assembly constituency in Delhi.
" A total of 700 forms for inclusion of names in the electoral rolls were approved by the EROs in 70 Assembly constituencies in Delhi till Tuesday. Chadha's name was among them," a Delhi CEO office official told PTI.
RAGHAV CHADHA'S VOTER LIST CONTROVERSY
The development has put Chadha's voter registration under scrutiny and raised the question of how his name could be added after the publication of the draft electoral rolls. India Today has contacted the Election Commission seeking clarification.
Delhi's electoral rolls were frozen between June 16 and August 31 as part of the SIR exercise. The draft rolls were published on August 31, while Chadha's name was removed from Punjab's draft roll on September 3.
According to the Delhi CEO's office, around 2.14 lakh Form 6 applications had been received by August 31. Form 6 is used to apply for inclusion in the electoral roll as a voter.
During the claims and objections period, another 25,011 Form 6 applications were submitted by September 7 seeking inclusion in the final electoral rolls. The final voter list is scheduled to be published on November 4.
Under ECI rules, people whose names are missing from the draft electoral roll can submit Form 6 during the claims and objections period. Once approved by the Electoral Registration Officers, these applications are incorporated into the final electoral roll.
While Raghav Chadha's name was absent from the draft list, it was subsequently added to the electoral roll of Rajinder Nagar constituency.
BOOTH NUMBER 46 CONTROVERSY
The AAP has questioned the process through which Chadha's name was added.
At a press conference, AAP Delhi chief Saurabh Bharadwaj claimed that Chadha's name had been included in the electoral roll for booth number 46 in Rajinder Nagar.
The ECI portal showed Chadha's name at serial number 747 at booth number 46. The draft electoral roll published on August 31, however, ended at serial number 746, meaning Chadha's name did not feature in the original list.
Bharadwaj demanded clarity from the Election Commission on whether Chadha's voter registration had been transferred from Punjab to Delhi.
"Raghav Chadha himself was claiming that he is a voter from Punjab and would get his vote recast there. The ECI had also frozen the draft electoral roll. In such a situation, how did his name get added to the voter list in Delhi during SIR? Under what process was this new vote created?" Bharadwaj asked.
However, this is not the first time Chadha's name has appeared in the Rajinder Nagar electoral roll.
In his affidavit for the 2022 Rajya Sabha election, Chadha had stated that he was a registered voter at booth number 52 in Rajinder Nagar.
After being elected to the Rajya Sabha from Punjab, Chadha moved his electoral registration. He also cast his vote at a polling booth in Mohali's SAS Nagar during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The 37-year-old politician left the AAP earlier this year and joined the BJP along with six other MPs.
His return to Delhi's voter list has now triggered renewed interest in his electoral registration.
RAGHAV CHADHA'S 'DUMPED LOVER' JIBE
Responding strongly to the AAP's allegations, Chadha accused the party of behaving like a "dumped lover" and insisted that he had complied with all applicable ECI guidelines and procedures.
"I seem to be haunting Arvind Kejriwal and the AAP. Day and night, all they think about is Raghav Chadha and how to attack him. They are behaving like a bitter ex who has just been dumped," Chadha said in a statement.
However, he did not specifically explain how his name appeared in Delhi's electoral rolls after the draft list had already been published.
"I have followed all applicable ECI guidelines and procedures and availed the prescribed remedies," he said.
Chadha also accused the AAP of confusing electoral rolls with party membership records. "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," he said.
The Election Commission is now expected to clarify the circumstances surrounding Chadha's addition to Delhi's voter list.
