Lal’s dynasty vs Lal’s dynasty vs Lal’s dynasty

CM B S Hooda, himself the face of the second generation in the family of veteran Congresman Ranbir Singh.

Haryana is going into its first assembly election without any of the three former chief ministers who share the surname Lal, but later generations are keeping the dynastic battle alive. A look at the who’s who of the three families.

Bhajan Lal, the last of the three giants, died in 2011. His son Kuldeep Bishnoi won the family’s Hisar Lok Sabha seat for his then fledgling party the Haryana Janhit Congress. His wife Renuka Bishnoi entered the assembly from Adampur, the seat he vacated.

Bishnoi’s elder brother Chander Mohan, a fornmer Congressman, has been deputy chief minister but his romance, marriage and divorce with Anuradha Bali a.k.a. Fiza Mohammad pushed him out of political prominence. Mohan converted to become Chand Mohammad, then became Chander Mohan again and ultimately joined his younger brother in the HJC.

Both brothers are likely to contest these assembly elections. Renuka too may contest, after having resigned from the assembly following her husband’s defeat in the Lok Sabha elections to Dushyant Chautala — fourth generation in Devi Lal’s family. The Bishnois’ mother had contested the last assembly election, unsuccessfully.

Bansi Lal had two sons, the late Surender Singh whose wife Kiran Choudhary is a Congress minister, and former BCCI chief Ranbir Mahendra who too is in politics along with his son-in-law Som Vir. It was Surender Singh who had inherited the legacy and his wife seems to be carrying it forward, having taken his place in the assembly. She is the Minister for Excise and Taxation.

In the third generation is her daughter Shruti Choudhary, who lost the Lok Sabha election from Bhiwani-Mehendergarh and is now ready to contest the assembly elections.

Devi Lal’s family has branched out in politics. Of his three politician sons, the one identified with his legacy is Om Prakash Chautala of the INLD. Of the other two sons, Pratap Chautala died this year and his son Anirudh recently joined the BJP, while Ranjit Singh is in the Congress and is again seeking a party ticket.

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O P and his son Ajay are in jail in connection with a teacher recruitment scam, leaving the leadership with his younger son Abhay Singh. Abhay and his Dushyant are leading the party campaign in these elections.

“Because of our political legacy, we are instantly identifiable not just in the state but across the country,” says Hisar MP Dushyant, who defeated Kuldeep Bishnoi of the Bhajan Lal family in the elections. “But there is a high level of expectations of us. It is not easy to do things the way my great-grandfather used to; times have changed.”

The other dynasties
Chief Minister B S Hooda, himself the face of the second generation in the family of veteran Congresman Ranbir Singh who was a member of Joint Punjab Legislative Assembly, has initiated his son Deepender, who is now the MP from Rohtak .

Congress spokesman Randeep Surjewala is the son of veteran Congressman Shamsher Singh Surjewala. “It does help but ultimately one has to carve his or her own niche in politics,” he says.