BJP, Cong vie for Bansi Lal’s legacy in Tosham
The granddaughter and grandson of ex-CM Bansi Lal are at loggerheads in the family pocket borough of Tosham Assembly constituency in Bhiwani. After the BJP fielded Shruti Choudhry from the Assembly seat, the Congress has pitted Anirudh Chaudhry against her.
The Tosham constituency is the home turf of former CM Bansi Lal which has been won by him or a member of his family 13 times since 1967. Only Dharambir Singh (outside the Bansi Lal family) managed to win this seat twice — in 1987 and 2000 — for the Lok Dal and the Congress, respectively.
The BJP seems to be in contention for the first time ever after the arrival of Bansi Lal’s granddaughter Shruti as its candidate. Shruti and her mother Kiran Choudhry had recently quit the Congress to join the BJP. Kiran, who had won this seat for the Congress four times in a row, is now the Rajya Sabha MP, elected on the BJP’s ticket.
The Congress fielded Anirudh to make it a contest between the Bansi Lal’s family. A political expert said it would be interesting to watch the contest in Tosham where the legacy of Bansi Lal is at stake for both the BJP and the Congress.
Anirudh’s father, former MLA Ranbir Mahendra had politically separated from his father Bansi Lal as Mahendra remained loyal to Bansi Lal’s political rival Bhajan Lal for a long time. However, he never contested against his father (Bansi Lal), brother Surender Singh and sister-in-law Kiran Choudhry from Tosham Assembly segment. Bansi Lal represented Tosham segment six times in the Assembly while his son Surender Singh won three times and Surender’s wife Kiran Choudhry won four times from here.
There had been one direct contest between brothers Surender Singh and Ranbir Mahendra in 1998 Lok Sabha election from Bhiwani Lok Sabha seat when Singh emerged victorious while Mahendra trailed at third place.
Dilawar Singh, a resident of Mandhan village in Tosham, said the Bansi Lal family had a huge following in the segment, but with the two candidates being from the same family, the electorate is set to be divided. There has been a sentiment critical of the BJP in a large segment of society. “Thus Kiran Choudhry’s decision of joining the BJP has not gone down well with them. Anirudh Chaudhry’s entry has divided followers into two camps,” he said.
