Raghav Chadha's name deleted from Punjab voter rolls, he says AAP burning with anger

Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha’s name has been deleted from the Punjab draft electoral rolls prepared under the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR), with his entry marked as 'permanently shifted'. Chadha, who was elected as an AAP Rajya Sabha MP from Punjab in 2022 and joined the BJP recently, has alleged that the deletion was an act of "political vendetta" as the AAP is "burning with anger".Chadha’s name appears in the ASDD (Absent, Shifted, Deceased and Duplicate) list published on August 13 and the reason recorded against his entry was 'permanently shifted'. He is among 20.66 lakh voters, or around 9.7 per cent of Punjab’s pre-SIR electorate, whose names have been deleted from the draft rolls.Reacting to the development, Chadha said his voter ID is registered in Mohali and questioned why he had been classified as 'shifted'. The MP added the electoral rolls were only in the draft stage and that he was already availing himself of the remedies provided under the SIR guidelines."This does not seem like a mere clerical mistake. This is a clear case of political vendetta," Chadha said in a detailed social media post, alleging that the AAP government was using the state’s administrative machinery against those who had left the party. "Ever since I left the corrupt Aam Aadmi Party, its leadership has been burning with anger," he said. 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.Thankfully, pic.twitter.com/laAFAAWYiQ— Raghav Chadha (@raghav_chadha) September 3, 2026 The 37-year-old MP quit AAP and joined the BJP in April, along with six other Rajya Sabha MPs. Explaining his decision, Chadha said AAP had "completely deviated from its principles, values and morals" while the AAP, in turn, accused him of being "opportunistic" and questioning his absence from key political battles and protests."Ever since I left the corrupt Aam Aadmi Party, its leadership has been burning with anger. It has unleashed the Punjab Police and the Punjab Government’s administrative machinery against those of us who refused to remain silent. Other MPs who left AAP and joined the BJP have also been targeted by Punjab Govt. This wrongful classification is only the latest act in that political vendetta," the MP said. Chadha further pointed out that a provision in the SIR guidelines creating a "protected list" for public representatives, including MPs and MLAs, had been "wilfully violated" in his case. He maintained that Punjab's draft electoral rolls were "not the private property" of the ruling AAP.The claims and objections window for SIR is open until September 12 and the final electoral rolls are expected to be published in October 2026.However, the deletion of Chadha’s name from the Punjab voter rolls does not, by itself, affect his eligibility to continue as a Rajya Sabha MP from Punjab. The requirement that a Rajya Sabha candidate must be registered as a voter in the state they represent was removed in 2003 through an amendment to the Representation of the People Act.- EndsPublished On: Sep 3, 2026 08:04 IST