New Delhi, October 16, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
India on Friday rejected US Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal’s comments on the country’s electoral process, describing them as “unwarranted and uninformed” and saying they amounted to interference in the electoral practices of a fellow democracy.
Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal made the remarks during a bi-weekly media briefing in New Delhi, responding to a question about Jayapal’s concerns over reports of names being removed from India’s electoral rolls.
“We find the remarks of the Congresswoman unwarranted and uninformed and tantamount to interfering in the electoral practices of a fellow democracy. This is an approach that undermines democracy itself,” Jaiswal said.
Jayapal, a Democrat representing Washington state, had expressed concern over the reported removal of voters’ names from electoral rolls in India.
“I am deeply concerned about the actions of the Indian government to purge 130 million people from the voting rolls,” she wrote on X.
India’s Ambassador to the United States, Vinay Mohan Kwatra, had also rejected Jayapal’s allegations on Thursday, describing her comments as interference in India’s internal affairs.
“The remarks by Rep. Jayapal on India’s electoral and political processes are unacceptable interference in India’s internal affairs,” Kwatra wrote on X.
He said India was a vibrant democracy with robust, independent constitutional institutions and a longstanding record of free and fair elections. Kwatra also said he remained open to constructive discussions with the congresswoman to address what he described as her misconceptions.
Jayapal, who was born in Chennai, previously served as chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. She has also raised concerns about Indian government policies in the past. In 2019, she moved a resolution in the US House of Representatives urging India to lift communication restrictions in Kashmir.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission of India has been conducting a nationwide Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in phases.
The poll body has said that lists of absent, shifted, deceased and duplicate voters were displayed publicly and shared with political parties. It has also stated that people whose names have been deleted from the electoral rolls can apply for enrolment at any time.
FOLLOW NOW
