From Party Shift To Voter ID Shift: Raghav Chadha’s ‘Shifting’ Saga Gets A New Twist

Raghav Chadha appears to have found himself at the centre of a new kind of “shift”, this time, not a political one.

After shifting from the Aam Aadmi Party to the BJP earlier this year, the Rajya Sabha MP has now found his name marked as “shifted” in Punjab’s draft electoral rolls, setting off another political confrontation with his former party.

Chadha has cried foul, alleging political vendetta and questioning how his name, despite being registered as a voter in Mohali, came to be classified as shifted.

The AAP, however, has its own version of the “shift” story. The party says Chadha has been living in Delhi rather than Punjab and has accused him of attempting to get his voter registration moved back to Delhi through what it calls a “backdated process.”

In other words, what began as Chadha questioning why his voter entry was marked “shifted” has quickly turned into a broader political exchange over where he lives, where he votes and who is responsible for the change.

Chadha insists the development reflects political vendetta and says he is pursuing the remedies available under the electoral revision process. The AAP, meanwhile, argues that the Election Commission, and not the Punjab government, conducts the Special Intensive Revision and determines changes to electoral rolls.

The timing has added an unmistakable layer of irony to the dispute. Chadha’s political journey itself recently involved a major shift, from the AAP to the BJP. Now, his voter status has become the latest battleground over another alleged “shift”.

For the moment, however, the entry remains part of the draft electoral rolls, not the final list. The claims and objections process is underway, with the final rolls expected in October.

What started as a question over a single word “shifted”, has therefore become a political argument over residence, voter registration and, inevitably, Chadha’s own history of shifting political ground.