The ‘chacha-bhatijas’ feud in Haryana’s influential Chautala family continues to play out in the public after the split in Indian National Lok Dal, state’s main opposition party.
As the breakaway faction of the INLD led by Ajay Chautala and his two sons — Hisar MP Dushyant and Digvijay are set to formally launch their party at Jind on December 9, Leader of opposition and INLD’s senior leader Abhay Chautala continues to slam them for allegedly weakening the party founded by former Deputy Prime Minister Chaudhuri Devi Lal.
In absence of former INLD leader Ajay Chautala, who is in prison serving a 10-year jail term along with his father INLD chief OP Chautala in a teachers’ recruitment scam, Dushyant and Digvijay and their uncle Abhay Chautala are not letting go of any opportunity to hit out at each other.
From the fight over possession of party offices across the state to contesting elections in Chautala’s bastion Sirsa, both sides are engaged in a war of words for over a month now.
The latest salvo in the war of words within the Chautala clan is fired by Abhay Chautala.
In an apparent dig at Dushyant’s aspirations to become Chief Minister, Abhay while addressing party workers recently said, “One cannot become Chief Minister after being born in the family of Devi Lal and OP Chautala (INLD chief). You need support of 45 MLAs as well.”
On his elder brother Ajay’s family members’ announcement to contest from Dabwali assembly seat sans INLD symbol, Abhay said, they won’t be even able to save their security deposits in the polls.
Dabwali assembly segment had elected Ajay in the 2009 Assembly polls. After Ajay was sentenced in the JBT teachers’ recruitment scam in 2013, his wife Naina Chautala had won this seat in 2014 assembly polls.
Only a day before, Abhay held a party workers’ meeting at Dabwali, represented by his sister-in-law and asked the voters to ensure that whosoever contested against the INLD from the constituency in next polls lost security deposit.
Abhay, an MLA from Ellenabad has also accused his nephews of holdings meetings with BJP and Congress leaders.
Apparently incensed over the statements, Hisar MP Dushyant Chautala hit back saying that the Leader of opposition should take care of his own party, given to him as a gift.
“One person cannot make anyone Chief Minister but the people of Haryana will choose their leader,” Dushyant said while referring to Abhay’s jibe at him over CM’s post.
Responding to the media queries at Sonipat whether he will contest Lok Sabha or Vidhan Sabha polls next year, Dushyant said that his party which will be formally launched on December 9 will decide on this.
Reacting to the allegations of holding meetings with BJP and Congress leaders, he said that the Leader of opposition should put forth evidence to prove such allegations.
Backing his elder brother, Indian National Students’ Organisation (INSO) chief Digvijay Chautala also lashed out at his uncle Abhay asking him to refrain from leveling baseless allegations.
“We had been expelled from the INLD and we are launching a separate party. The Leader of opposition should now stop making such comments,” Digvijay said while talking to the mediapersons here.
Digvijay also took a dig at INLD’s proposed “Jan-Adhikaar Yatra” from December 1 on the issue of Sutlej Yamuna Link (SYL) canal.
“The political parties are doing politics on SYL issue. The waters of SYL will not come to Haryana by holding such yatras or rallies. They talk about SYL canal in just one line and then talk about their party in such rallies,” he said while targeting the INLD.
A day before, the INLD and its alliance partner Bahujan Samaj Party had announced to hold ‘Jan-Adhikaar Yatra” across the state starting December 1 from Kurukshetra.
Abhay Chautala has been holding party workers’ meetings in various parts of Haryana to mobilize party workers for the proposed event and also to gear up for civic body polls on December 16.
On the other hand, Dushyant and Digvijay have geared up to stage a show of strength at Jind rally on December 9, when the name of their party will be announced. The duo has been holding meetings with their supporters in various constituencies to maximise the mobilisation of people to attend the Jind rally.
Notably, the feud in the Chautala clan—the first family of the INLD—had spilled into the open after INLD patriarch OP Chautala expelled three family members from the party—first his grandsons Hisar MP Dushyant and Digvijay, and then Ajay—for alleged “anti-party activities”.
Following his expulsion, Ajay had announced to form a separate political outfit, which he said will contest both Lok Sabha and assembly polls in Haryana next year.
The split in INLD before crucial 2019 Lok Sabha polls does not seem to augur well for the party. With resignations from the INLD continuing to pour in support of Ajay Chautala, the INLD at present seems ill-prepared to contain the political damage.
