Plea In Delhi Court Seeks FIR Against Sonia Gandhi Over Electoral Roll Entry Before Citizenship

Last Updated:September 04, 2025, 23:40 IST

A petition alleges Sonia Gandhi was listed in New Delhi electoral rolls in 1980 before gaining Indian citizenship in 1983; Delhi court adjourns hearing to September 10.

Congress leader Sonia Gandhi. (PTI)

A petition has been filed against Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, alleging that her name was included in the electoral rolls three years before she became an Indian citizen.

The petition, filed before Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Vaibhav Chaurasia of Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court under Section 175 (4) (power of magistrate to order investigation) of BNSS, has sought directions to the police for investigation into the allegations.

The court heard the matter for some time today, but later adjourned the matter for the next hearing on September 10.

The plea, filed by Vikas Tripathi, has alleged that the Congress leader’s name was included in the electoral roll of the New Delhi constituency in 1980, but she acquired Indian citizenship in 1983.

The petitioner pointed out that Gandhi’s name, along with that of her late brother-in-law Sanjay Gandhi, was later deleted from the rolls in 1982.

It was argued that such a deletion indicates that her earlier entry in the electoral rolls was irregular, as only Indian citizens are eligible to be enrolled as voters.

“The reason for the deletion is nowhere to be found. There can be two reasons: either someone takes the citizenship of another country or files a form 8 (application for correction in particulars), but the prerequisite is that the person has to be a citizen," the petitioner claimed in the court.

“What documents were given to the Election Commission (EC) when her name got included in 1980?" senior advocate Pavan Narang, appearing for the complainant, asked.

He claimed there was “some forgery" and that a public authority had been “cheated." “My limited request is to either direct the police to register an FIR under the appropriate sections. Whether they are made out or not is the domain of the police," Narang said.

He said that in the interim period, a notice could be issued to the police for filing a status report.

The complaint also relies on a 1985 Allahabad High Court judgment in Rakesh Singh vs Sonia Gandhi, which had examined the issue of her citizenship in the context of an election petition.

While the court had then held that she became an Indian citizen on April 30, 1983, by registration, the present plea argues that any voter enrollment prior to that date was illegal.

(With inputs from agencies)

Shobhit Gupta

Shobhit Gupta is a sub-editor at News18.com and covers India and International news. He is interested in day to day political affairs in India and geopolitics. He earned his BA Journalism (Hons) degree from Ben...Read More

Shobhit Gupta is a sub-editor at News18.com and covers India and International news. He is interested in day to day political affairs in India and geopolitics. He earned his BA Journalism (Hons) degree from Ben...

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