The shine is gone, but the stealth remains. This is probably true for the royals of Chhattisgarh — the Maharaja and many Rajas of the tribal heartland. The state, which got its name from its status of having “Chhattis Garh” or 36 forts, housed a similar number of ancient dynasties — many of them were tribal kingdoms of Gond Rajas.
Post-Independence, Congress got a foothold in the heavily forested and minerals-rich Bastar through one such highly influential royal family. The first Congress MLA from Bastar was its Maharaja, Pravir Chandra Bhanj Deo. A non-tribal by origin, he was known as the mightiest tribal leader and king from the region. Following a bloody history of an alleged state-conspired killing of Pravir Bhanj Deo, Bastar and Chhattisgarh as a whole witnessed severe political turbulence.
In 2000, when the state was carved out of Madhya Pradesh, it got its name from the tradition and common history of the royals — Chhattisgarh. However, two decades or more down the line, many royal families started disintegrating as there was no heir or protégé. The number has now gone down by 1/3rd. Going by the data available with the existing royal families and historians, the state now has 12 royal families, nine of which are directly or indirectly associated with politics.
The ongoing election is now seeing at least six candidates who are related to or associated with royal families. While three members or associates of royal families have been fielded by the BJP, three are either direct descendants or associates of royals fielded by Congress.
The royal families of Chhattisgarh, unlike the ones of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, are connected with their erstwhile tribal subjects through their traditional influence and aura. The state has at least half-a-dozen Gond or tribal royals and all political parties try to woo them for the sway they have over the tribal population.
Royal Rajneeti
Of these 12 families, the state of Bastar and Jashpur royals have been with the BJP, while royals of Surguja, Khairagarh, Kawardha, Kanker, Raigard and two others have remained with the Congress. Bastar’s 12 seats, which voted on Tuesday, have been the epicentre of political turbulence and power shift.
According to the election data and the documentation by author-historian Rajeev Ranjan Prasad, Congress gained from five in 1957 to eight seats in 1972. Between 1977 and 1993, Congress got 11 seats in 1985 and BJP later recovered to get eight seats in 1993. Between 1998 and 2018, the shift happened from Congress to BJP yet again. Congress got 11 seats in 1998, while BJP wrested the same from Congress in 2008.
Speaking to News18, Prasad said: “Of all the royal families, Bastar Maharaja was the mightiest and most motivated as a tribal leader. However, his relationship with then prime ministers Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi deteriorated post-Independence. Congress started losing ground as Maharaja Pravir Bhanj Deo, who was the first party MLA from Bastar, formed his own outfit, naming it Maharaja Party.”
He added: “Deo was dethroned by the government by issuing a special gazette and his brother Vijay Singh Bhanj Deo was made the king in 1962. Four years later, in 1966, Pravir Bhanj Deo was killed in his own palace by police. DP Mishra was the chief minister and Indira Gandhi was the PM then.
“Since then, the connection between royal families and politics has been strange and to some extent, strained. There was no stability. The king was murdered for the sake of politics. The Bastar royal family since then was never associated with Congress, but families like the Sarguja royals, who are related with Bastar, have always stayed with Congress,” said Prasad, who has written 22 books on Bastar and about the Chhattisgarh’s tribals.
High Stakes
The state’s current deputy chief minister TS Singh Deo belongs to the Surguja royal family. The Khairagarh royals had Devwrat Singh as a Congress MP. Later, he joined Janta Congress and became an MLA in 2018. He died later as an MLA. His family members are, however, still with Congress. Two family members of the Judevs of Jashpur have been fielded as candidates by BJP. Bastar king Kamal Singh Bhanj Deo’s candidate Kiran Dev has been fielded by the BJP.
Bastar’s royal family is believed to be the richest and largest royal family in the state. It used to have 18 seats and eight districts in undivided Madhya Pradesh. Now, it has seven districts and 12 assembly seats under their erstwhile royal state. The 38-year-old king Kamal Singh Bhanj Deo studied in London School of Economics and now is an important member of the BJP. Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited his palace last month and offered prayers in the family’s temple of Danteswari Devi.
“Our forefather, Maharaja Pravir Chandra Bhanj Deo, was a tribal leader. Tribals used to see him as their god. He was killed as Congress felt he was trying to build a Hindu Rashtra. Since then, our family has always been called a royal family that wants to make its own tribal kingdom. At times, we were also termed as the one that wants to build a Hindu Rashtra. We could never associate with Congress since then,” Kamal Singh Bhaj Deo told News 18.
Every royal family of Chhattisgarh has its own equations with the power centre and they decide on their alignments accordingly. However, as of now, more families remain aligned towards Congress, he added.
In Khairagarh, Rani Padma Devi Singh is a senior member of Congress and busy with the campaign of Congress candidate Yasodha Verma. “Verma is senior leader of Congress and she is supported by the royal family. Majority of Chhattisgarh royals have always associated with Congress because the party has a link with people. BJP is a party of capitalists, businessmen and industrialists. They do not want to protect tribal rights,” said Padma Devi at her residence, flanked by local Congress leaders.