Relief for AAP: ECI clears Avadh Ojha’s voter ID transfer for Delhi elections

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday granted approval for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to transfer the voter ID of Avadh Ojha, its candidate from Patparganj, to Delhi. The decision followed a meeting between senior AAP leaders and top ECI officials.

The AAP delegation, which included Delhi Chief Minister Atishi, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, and party MP Sanjay Singh, met with ECI representatives. Post-meeting, Kejriwal confirmed that the Election Commission had granted the party’s request for the transfer.

#WATCH | Delhi | AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal says, "We are just coming back after meeting the Election Commission... The Election Commission has ordered to shift the vote of Awadh Ojha, and he will be the voter and will be able to cast his vote...he will be able to file… pic.twitter.com/G5PFadqne3

— ANI (@ANI) January 13, 2025

The issue at the center of the meeting was the transfer of Avadh Ojha’s voter ID from Greater Noida to Delhi. Kejriwal emphasized the importance of this transfer, stating that it was necessary for Ojha to be able to file his nomination papers and contest the election.

Kejriwal mentioned that Ojha had submitted Form 8 on January 7, the final day for such transfers. However, he accused the Delhi Chief Electoral Officer of unilaterally changing the deadline to January 6, an act Kejriwal labeled as "unlawful" and suggested was intended to prevent Ojha from running for election.

Besides Ojha’s issue, the delegation also raised concerns about irregularities in voter registrations linked to addresses of senior BJP leaders in the New Delhi constituency.

Arvind Kejriwal had previously written a letter to the Chief Election Commissioner, highlighting the issue of alleged voter list irregularities in New Delhi. Kejriwal, who represents New Delhi in the assembly, will face BJP’s Parvesh Verma and Congress’ Sandeep Dikshit in the upcoming elections.

In his letter, Kejriwal expressed concerns over BJP’s efforts to manipulate voter lists, accusing the party of trying to undermine the integrity of the election process in New Delhi.

Kejriwal stated in the letter, "I write to you with grave concern regarding the repeated attempts by members of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to manipulate the voter lists in the New Delhi Assembly constituency in a systematic effort to subvert the integrity of the upcoming elections."

The Delhi Assembly elections are set to take place on February 5, with the results expected to be declared on February 8.