The ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Delhi has triggered a fresh political controversy after BJP Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha’s name was added to the voter list in the Rajinder Nagar Assembly constituency. The development comes days after his name was removed from the Punjab electoral rolls.
AAP has questioned how Chadha’s name appeared in the Delhi roll after the draft list published on August 31 showed 746 voters in the concerned polling part. Delhi AAP chief Saurabh Bharadwaj claimed Chadha subsequently appeared as the 747th voter and sought an explanation from the Election Commission.
The Election Commission’s side presents a different picture. Delhi election officials said Chadha’s inclusion was processed through the regular electoral-roll updation mechanism. His application was among around 700 inclusion applications approved by Electoral Registration Officers across Delhi’s 70 Assembly constituencies by Tuesday. The Delhi CEO’s office has also clarified that additions, deletions and corrections are processed through Forms 6, 7 and 8 under the applicable electoral rules.
The timing, however, makes the issue politically sensitive. Chadha has recently shifted from AAP to the BJP, while his removal from Punjab’s draft electoral roll had already sparked accusations of political vendetta.
Chadha has maintained that he followed the Election Commission’s prescribed procedures and accused AAP of politicising the matter. The immediate issue is therefore less about Chadha’s eligibility and more about whether the electoral revision process has been applied transparently and consistently.
The final electoral rolls are expected to be published on November 4. Until then, the controversy is likely to remain a political and procedural test for the Election Commission.
