Chautala vs Chautala: Chacha-bhatija trade barbs on infamous Meham, Kandela violence

Deepender Deswal & Anil Kakkar

The hostilities between the two factions of former Deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal’s family seem to be deepening, with INLD leader Abhay Chautala (chacha) and JJP leader Digvijay Chautala (bhatija) exchanging barbs on the violence at Meham and Kandela villages during Om Prakash Chautala's regime decades ago.

Referring to the past incidents, like the infamous 'Meham kand' of 1989-1990, Om Prakash Chautala’s grandson, Digvijay — JJP candidate from the Dabwali Assembly segment — accused his uncle Abhay of tarnishing the image of the Chautala family. “You should not forget the person from the Devi Lal clan who tarnished the family image. In the Meham violence of 1990, and during the INLD regime after 2000, this person harassed people by taking away vehicles or illegally occupying kothis. You should remember this,” he said.

Digvijay apparently cast aspersions on Abhay regarding Meham violence. In 1989-1990, Meham byelection was marred by violence after the Meham Chaubisi khap panchayat fielded Anand Singh Dangi as an Independent to take on the then Chief Minister, Om Prakash Chautala.

Subsequently, an Independent candidate, Amir Singh — said to be close to the Chautalas — was found dead before the byelection. Dangi was blamed for the murder and the police tried to arrest him, which led to clashes that claimed three lives on May 17, 1989.

Violence recurred during re-polling on February 28, 1990, resulting in the death of a policeman and six villagers. The incident forced Chautala to resign, and ‘Meham mayhem’ echoed at the national level.

Abhay, however, sought to turn the heat on his brother Ajay Singh Chautala (Digvijay’s father) alleging that, “The then Chief Minister, Om Prakash Chautala, assigned the responsibility to his father (referring to Ajay) to talk to the agitated farmers at Kandela village in 2002. If there was any incident of atrocity on farmers by the police, it was due to his (Digvijay’s father) fault.”

The Kandela episode had roots in the promise of Om Prakash Chautala, who promised to waive power bills ahead of the 2000 elections. Two years later, the farmers of Kandela launched an agitation, saying that the Chautala government had reneged on its promise. During the stir, the farmers clashed with the police, leading to the death of nine farmers.

Prof SS Chahar, chairperson of the Centre for Haryana Studies, said the two incidents occurred during Chautala's regime and were a blot on the political history of the state.