Power play & the three Lals

Vikram Singh  

READING the book titled My Encounters with the Three Lals of Haryana, I was reminded of my brief reminiscences of the famous trio of Haryana politics, and two other chief ministers. They would often visit my grandfather Rizaq Ram’s residence, where I grew up.

A hot summer morning in 1978, as I was getting ready for school, I overheard that Bhajan Lal had come to meet nanaji. He was a big name even then as he had remained a minister in Bansi Lal’s Cabinet. He helped himself to a bowl of fruits in the backyard while my grandfather went about his breakfast. Later, he asked for a glass of milk. All this while they were having an intimate discussion on the political scenario of the state. I remember Bhajan Lal as a loud and witty character; I could see my grandfather break into laughter often during their talk. When I grew up, I came to understand that their brief association was all about ‘Operation Topple Devi Lal’, the reigning CM. This memory remained etched in my mind when I learnt that Bhajan Lal was, in fact, pitted against my grandfather in the race to be CM in June 1979, after the fall of the Devi Lal government. Mainly due to the blessings of Morarji Desai and the stock-in-trade character of some MLAs of yore, Bhajan Lal wore the crown.

During the 1983 Lok Sabha byelections in Sonepat, where my grandfather was fighting a prestigious battle against Devi Lal, the house was frequented by the legendary Bansi Lal.

I remember him as a loquacious man, with a distinct voice. He would be closeted with my grandfather in serious political discussions. I used to gladly seize the opportunity to serve water, tea or milk, as I could be in the same room and be privy to their talks. The frequency of his visits increased when he was anointed chief minister in 1986. One could make out the larger vision he had for the state from their wide-ranging discussions. Presumably, both shared a common objective of Haryana’s uplift. Later, when Bansi Lal formed his Haryana Vikas Party, my grandfather chose to remain with the Congress and distance grew between them.

The towering leader of Haryana, Devi Lal would visit the house in 1996. Standing over 6 ft tall, he had a stout bearing. My grandfather had joined hands with him. To my utter surprise, there was mutual respect and admiration cutting across their previous political encounters. I never sensed any awkwardness between them, rather they seemed to share brotherly affection. His son and former CM OP Chautala also accompanied him on these visits. But after the 1996 Lok Sabha polls, when nanaji lost to an Independent candidate, they grew apart, and Bhupinder Singh Hooda, as president of the Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee, began visiting my grandfather, with the request to return to the Congress fold. Hooda then won the CM’s race against the mighty Bhajan Lal and the rest, as they say, is history.

Affiliations change, players fall out, new ones come in, but the game of politics goes on forever.