Suri’s experience comes amid wider concerns over Punjab’s Special Intensive Revision, under which more than 20 lakh voters have been classified as absent, shifted, dead or duplicate.
BY PC Bureau
Former diplomat Navdeep Suri has raised concerns over the documentation being sought from voters during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Punjab, saying he was asked to establish his Indian citizenship after officials flagged discrepancies in records dating back to 2003.
Suri, who served as India’s ambassador to Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Australia before retiring from the diplomatic service in 2019, said he initially expected the verification process to be routine. He approached the Booth Level Officer (BLO), submitted his Voter ID and Aadhaar card and was told that his documents were in order.
However, he later received a message from a volunteer involved in the exercise informing him that some of his details did not match the records from the 2003 electoral roll.
“Sharing my experience with #SIR in Punjab. Went to BLO, submitted Voter ID and Aadhaar card, was assured that everything is in order. Got a message today from a volunteer saying some details don’t match with SIR in 2003!” Suri said in a post on X.
According to Suri, he was subsequently asked to provide additional documents proving his Indian citizenship. Since he was not in India in 2003, officials sought his passport as supporting documentation.
The former diplomat questioned the implications of such verification requirements for ordinary citizens, particularly those who may not possess extensive documentary records spanning several decades.
“If I have trouble establishing my citizenship after representing India in three countries, what’s the fate of the common citizen?” he asked.
There has so far been no specific response from the Election Commission of India, the Punjab government or the Centre to Suri’s account.
The SIR process in Punjab has now entered the claims-and-objections phase after draft electoral rolls for all 117 Assembly constituencies were published. Voters have been given time from August 13 to September 12, 2026, to submit claims and objections. Officials are expected to dispose of these by October 8, while the final revised electoral rolls are scheduled to be published on October 12.
The exercise began with door-to-door verification conducted between June 25 and August 3. According to official figures, forms relating to nearly 1.94 crore voters were collected and digitised from Punjab’s total electorate of about 2.14 crore.
Dear @ECISVEEP
Sharing my experience with #SIR in Punjab. Went to BLO, submitted Voter ID and Aadhaar card, was assured that everything is in order.
Got a message today from a volunteer saying some details don’t match with SIR in 2003!
1 –— Navdeep Suri (@navdeepsuri) August 23, 2026
READ: Bay of Bengal Shipwreck: Nearly $7 Million Cargo Lost
More than 20 lakh voters, or 9.63 per cent of the electorate, were placed in the ASDD category — covering voters classified as absent, shifted, dead or duplicate.
Suri’s experience has added to concerns expressed by political leaders over the verification exercise. Aam Aadmi Party leader Somnath Bharti had earlier said he was unable to trace his name in the 2002 electoral roll despite having graduated from IIT Delhi in 1997 and subsequently studied law in the national capital. Bharti also raised concerns over reports that between 20 lakh and 30 lakh names could ultimately be excluded from Punjab’s electoral rolls.
.@ECISVEEP
Spoke with BLO, was told that I should come and collect the notice. And then come again with unspecified documents that show I am an Indian citizen.
Replied that I was not in India in 2003, so they’ve asked for passport as proof.
2-— Navdeep Suri (@navdeepsuri) August 23, 2026
The Election Commission has maintained that the SIR is intended to clean up and update electoral rolls by identifying eligible voters and removing ineligible, duplicate or otherwise erroneous entries.
With the final rolls due to be published in October, the process is now under close scrutiny, particularly over the documentation required from voters whose present records do not readily match older electoral data.
