The New Delhi District Election Officer (DEO) has raised concerns over alleged pressure from senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders, including Raghav Chadha and Sanjay Singh.
The officer accused the leaders of frequently visiting the office to request personal details of objectors, a move deemed outside the guidelines set by the Election Commission of India (ECI).
In a letter addressed to Delhi’s Chief Electoral Officer, the DEO expressed alarm at what was described as political interference.
“Representatives of Aam Aadmi Party have been frequently visiting my office and are asking for personal details of objectors which is not mandated to be shared as per ECI guidelines,” the letter stated.
The DEO further alleged that AAP leaders have been attempting to exert undue influence by demanding details beyond the scope of routine electoral operations.
The letter also highlighted that Delhi Chief Minister Atishi had been summoning meetings without providing specific agendas, raising further concerns about potential political interference.
“Furthermore, the CM of GNCTD has been calling me for meetings without a specified agenda and, in the past, has held discussions regarding electoral rolls,” the DEO wrote.
The DEO has sought guidance from Delhi’s Chief Electoral Officer on whether to attend such meetings, emphasising the need for clarity on the appropriateness of such engagements.
“Your kind office is requested to provide insight and guidance in this matter, whether I am allowed to attend meetings called by the ruling government without any prior meeting agenda or any other appropriate action as deemed fit by the authority,” the DEO’s letter read.
These allegations come amid AAP’s claims of large-scale voter deletion in the New Delhi Assembly constituency ahead of the upcoming elections.
Earlier, Delhi Chief Minister Atishi, in a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer, highlighted a significant surge in voter addition and deletion applications.
According to her letter, between 29 October 2024 and 2 January 2025, 13,276 Form-6 applications were received, while 6,166 Form-7 applications were submitted for voter deletions.
Atishi noted that the total number of votes, as per the draft electoral rolls published after the summary revision on 29 October 2024, stood at 1,06,873. She pointed out that the number of deletion requests accounted for 5.77 per cent of the total votes, which she described as a “large-scale fraud.”
AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal echoed these concerns, alleging significant irregularities in voter additions and deletions. In a post on X, Kejriwal said, “Large-scale fraud taking place in voter additions and deletions in the New Delhi Assembly. Delhi CM Atishi ji writes this letter to CEC presenting evidence and seeking time to meet.”
The assembly elections in Delhi, expected in February 2025, come against the backdrop of these allegations. In the 2020 elections, AAP secured a landslide victory, winning 62 out of 70 seats, while the BJP managed to win eight.
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