New Delhi, September 3: The political landscape has intensified as the name of Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha has been removed from Punjab’s voter list. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are exchanging sharp statements regarding this issue. AAP has accused the government of removing a large number of voters from the list under the guise of a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process. Party spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar and Delhi state president Saurabh Bhardwaj have both issued statements targeting the BJP over Chadha’s voter removal.
Priyanka Kakkar alleged that Raghav Chadha’s name was cut from the Punjab voter list as part of the SIR process. She emphasized that this is not just an individual case. According to her, approximately 2 million voters in Punjab have had their names removed, with claims of around 130 million names being struck off nationwide. She questioned whether the respective state governments should be held accountable for such widespread removals.
Kakkar urged Chadha to advocate not only for his own voting rights but also for the millions in Punjab whose names have been eliminated from the voter list. She stated that Chadha has a responsibility to the people of Punjab who elected him to the Rajya Sabha. She claimed that there are significant flaws in the SIR process, which is allegedly being conducted under BJP directives.
The AAP spokesperson further accused Chadha of attempting to add his name back to the voter list in Delhi’s Rajendra Nagar using a back-dated form after the SIR process was completed. However, she noted that he has not publicly presented any official documents to support this claim. She argued that if rules are bypassed for a VIP, it would be unjust to ordinary voters who do not have such options available.
Saurabh Bhardwaj, AAP’s Delhi president, commented that since Raghav Chadha resides in Delhi, there is no reason for his vote to be registered in Punjab. He referenced SIR rules, stating that if a person is not found at their address during verification, their name can be removed from the voter list. Bhardwaj asserted that this is the reason behind Chadha’s name being struck off from Punjab’s list.
He claimed that many voters in Delhi have also lost their voting rights simply because they moved from one residence to another. He provided an example where a person who has lived in a rental property for a long time might be marked as ‘shifted’ if they relocate, thus not receiving an SIR form.
Bhardwaj accused the BJP of expressing concern over Chadha’s voter status while remaining silent about the large number of voters in Delhi who have lost their names. He stated that AAP is consistently raising this issue and demanding transparency in the electoral process. Bhardwaj also mentioned that he learned from some journalists about Chadha’s alleged attempt to register a back-dated vote in Delhi. He claimed that when journalists questioned the Election Commission about this, the process was reportedly halted.
Bhardwaj raised serious questions about the Election Commission’s procedures, alleging that many poor voters were affected before the SIR process. He argued that it is not fair to remove someone’s name simply because they were temporarily away from their residence. He also criticized Chadha’s previous stance on the ‘Right to Reject’, suggesting that he should apply the same principle to himself.
Bhardwaj emphasized that Raghav Chadha was sent to the Rajya Sabha by AAP legislators, and questions should arise regarding his moral authority after leaving the party. However, he noted that a member’s Rajya Sabha seat does not automatically end upon leaving a party; constitutional and legal provisions apply in such cases.
He also referenced a media report to question its journalism, claiming that journalists had information about Chadha’s alleged attempt to register a back-dated vote in Delhi, but this news was not published.
Leave a Comment