Punjab Voter List Row Deepens As Congress MP Dharamvira Gandhi's Name Misses SIR Draft
Punjab electoral roll issues surface for Congress MP
The name of two-time Member of Parliament from Patiala, Dr. Dharamvira Gandhi, is missing from Punjab's draft electoral rolls following the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, a development that came to light on Thursday and has raised fresh concerns about the accuracy and reliability of the state's voter list update process. The revelation has drawn particular attention given Dr. Gandhi's prominent political profile, his long electoral history in Patiala, and his decades-long residency at the address in question, all of which make the omission especially notable.
Dr. Gandhi, a senior Congress leader who previously represented Patiala as a member of the Aam Aadmi Party before switching his political allegiance to the Congress party ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, confirmed that his family's votes, including his own, are absent from the electoral rolls. "My family's votes, including mine, are missing from the electoral rolls," he said, expressing concern over the omission given his extensive and well-documented electoral history in the constituency, which spans multiple parliamentary contests over the years.
Elaborating on his connection to the address, Dr. Gandhi said he has resided there since around 2000, describing it as his permanent address across all official records, including those maintained by election authorities. He noted that he has contested three Lok Sabha elections from this residence and won two of them, a track record that underscores the significance of the address as both his home and his political base for well over two decades. Despite this long and thoroughly documented history, he said, his name and those of his family members do not appear on the current draft electoral rolls released as part of the SIR process, an omission he described as both surprising and concerning given the clarity of his residential and electoral record.
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In response to the discrepancy, Dr. Gandhi said he has already raised formal objections and submitted the required documentation in an effort to ensure that his name and those of his family members are restored in the final electoral rolls. His comments suggest that the correction process is now underway through official channels, with the outcome ultimately depending on how election authorities respond to the objections and supporting documents he has submitted. He did not indicate a specific timeline for when the matter might be resolved, though such corrections are typically expected to be addressed before the rolls are finalized.
The Special Intensive Revision exercise, which is intended to update, verify, and clean up voter rolls across the state, has reportedly resulted in a number of similar omissions being reported by various individuals in Punjab, raising broader questions about the thoroughness and accuracy of the revision process as a whole. Cases involving prominent political figures, such as Dr. Gandhi, are likely to draw particular scrutiny, given his public profile and the political implications of a sitting or former parliamentarian being excluded from voter rolls in the very constituency he has represented in Parliament.
As the matter unfolds, election officials are expected to review the objections raised by Dr. Gandhi and other affected voters before the rolls are finalized ahead of future elections. The episode is likely to add to ongoing political discussions in Punjab regarding the reliability of the SIR process, particularly as opposition parties and civil society groups continue to monitor how such large-scale revisions affect voter representation. Given the scale of the exercise and the number of voters potentially affected, the coming weeks are likely to see continued reporting on similar discrepancies as individuals across the state review the draft rolls and file objections where necessary.
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