Punjab SIR: Raghav Chadha’s name marked shifted in draft rolls; MP alleges AAP political vendetta

Mangalore Today News Network

Chandigarh, Sep 3, 2026: Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha’s name has been deleted from the draft electoral rolls of Punjab prepared as part of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), after his voter entry was classified as ‘shifted’.

Chadha, who is registered as a voter in Mohali, said in a post on X on Thursday that his name had been marked as ‘shifted’ in the draft rolls. However, noting that the rolls are still in draft form and the final electoral rolls are scheduled to be published in October 2026, he said he was exercising the remedies available under the SIR guidelines.

Chadha accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab of political vendetta, alleging that the deletion of his name was not a mere clerical error.

He claimed that the Punjab government had targeted him and other former AAP leaders who had left the party and joined the BJP, alleging that the latest development was part of a broader campaign of political retaliation.

Questioning how his name came to be classified as ‘shifted’, Chadha pointed out that various officials involved in the SIR process, including Booth Level Officers, Assistant Electoral Registration Officers, Electoral Registration Officers and District Election Officers, are part of the state government machinery.

He also noted that the Chief Electoral Officer of Punjab is a Punjab-cadre IAS officer.

Chadha alleged that the Election Commission officials had violated SIR guidelines relating to the protection of public representatives, including judges, MPs and MLAs.

“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 electoral rolls. The instruction was not overlooked. It was wilfully violated in my case,” he said.

He further asserted that the electoral rolls do not belong to any political party, saying, “AAP may run the Punjab Government, but Punjab’s Draft Electoral Rolls are not its private property.”