JAIPUR, NOV 27: An unseemly controversy over the lineage of heroic historical figure Rana Punja Bhil, forcing postponement of a programme to get his statue unveiled by the President, threatens to widen the rift between the tribals and the Rajputs in the erstwhile Mewar region, now Udaipur division.Punja Bhil was the tribal chieftain who rendered valuable help to Rana Pratap. Now, a Rajput family claiming descent from the hero has challenged his projection as a Bhil tribal. The occasion for protest is a move to install a statue of Punjab Bhil at Panarwa where it was scheduled to be unveiled by President next week. The petitioner Rana Manohar Singh Solanki has based his claim on records of his family.While the claim is yet to be settled, it effectively stalled the unveiling of Raja Punja's statue as the programme was postponed. It agitated the Bhils and now CPI(M-L), which has been trying to strike roots in the tribal belt, has taken up their cause. The Rajput family, however, continues to stick to its story which few had heard of before.Curiously, as pointed out in the State Government's reply before the court, no objections were raised on earlier occasions when statues of Rana Punja were installed at historical sites in the area.The State Government in its reply further points out that the Rana Punja, referred to in the family records furnished by the petitioner, arrived on the scene in Vikram Samwat 1690, according to Hindu calendar, or 1633 AD. While the battle of Haldi Ghati took place on Vikram Samwat 1633 or June 18, 1576.Moreover, the petitioner claimed that Maharana Uday Singh awarded the title of Rana to Harpal Singh in Vikram Samwat 1660 when, the State Government pointed out, Maharana Uday Singh had died in Vikram Samwat 1629.The Government's reply also points out that the historical records described Rana Punja as barely clad and armed with bow and arrows. Colonel James Todd also described him as chief of the Bhil army.The Government clarified that it had nothing against the petitioner or his family and had no intention of casting any aspersions on his reputation. The petitioner himself had conspired to falsely claim to be Rana Punja's descendant and wanted to stall the unveiling of the statue by President.The State Government has said that if the unveiling of the statue was stopped because of caste factor it would be unfair to the Bhils.Bhil organisations are also reported to have lodged protest at the attempt to portray Rana Punja as a Rajput and labelled it as an attempt to destroy the glorious history of the Adivasis.
