BJP, Cong vie for Bansi Lal's legacy in Tosham Assembly constituency

The granddaughter and grandson of former Chief Minister Bansi Lal are at loggerheads in the family pocket borough of Tosham Assembly constituency in Bhiwani district. After the BJP fielded Shruti Choudhry from the Assembly segment, the Congress has pitted Anirudh Chaudhary 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 along with her mother Kiran Choudhry had recently quit the Congress to join the BJP. Kiran, who had won this seat for 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 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.

Dilawar Singh, a resident of Mandhan village in Tosham, said the Bansi Lal family had significant 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 the 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. Shruti, though, will have the backing of the BJP-leaning voters,” he said.

Notably, the BJP candidate in 2019 Assembly polls, Shashi Ranjan Parmar, criticised the party for denying him the ticket and announced to join the electoral fray as an independent candidate.