The Royals Contesting In Himachal Pradesh Elections

In the land of gods, where local deities are revered, royalty continues to command its own space in the politics of Himachal Pradesh.

While kingdoms may have gone, many scions of the erstwhile royal families of the hill state are persisting at the hustings, in their bid to continue to "rule" albeit by the dint of the ballot now.

Not that the royal charms have sustained the electoral weathers. The influence of royals in Himachal's politics has waned over the years, as is clear from their depleting numbers in the poll fray this time.

Only a handful of royal scions are contesting the state Assembly election to be held on November 12.

The most prominent among the royals who dominated the state politics for almost five decades was Virbhadra Singh of the Rampur Bushahr royal family. His son Vikramaditya is now in the fray from the Shimla Rural seat.

Vikramaditya Singh's mother Pratibha Singh, who hails from the Keonthal royal family, is the president of the Himachal Pradesh Congress. She is not contesting the election as she is the MP from Mandi.

Prominent among the other royals trying their electoral luck is Asha Kumari, who is married in the royal family of Chamba. A five-time MLA from Dalhousie, she has been nominated by the Congress this time as well.

Incumbent MLA Anirudh Singh of the Koti royal family is contesting again from Kasumpti. He is a former chairman of the Shimla Zila Parishad.

Another royal in the fray is Hiteshwar Singh as an independent from the Banjar constituency in Kullu. His father Maheshwar Singh, the "king" of the erstwhile Kullu kingdom, lost his ticket as his son threw his hat in the ring.

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), however, has pitted commoners against the royals fielded by the Congress and raised the pitch against the grand old party, accusing it of being a party of "rajas and ranis".

The reference is to former chief minister Virbhadra Singh, who ruled the state for decades and whose wife and son are still running the show for the Congress.

However, missing from the poll contest this time is Vijay Jyoti Sen of the Keonthal royal family, who is also Pratibha Singh's sister-in-law. Mr Sen had contested the last Assembly polls from Kasumpti. She is supporting the BJP this time.

Chandresh Kumari of the Kangra royal family is also not there in this election. She had a sway once in both Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan as she hails from the Jodhpur royal family. She has been a former minister in Himachal Pradesh and a former member of Parliament too.

"Gone are the days of raja-rani, now is the time of the common people," Union Home Minister and senior BJP leader Amit Shah had said while launching a tirade against royalty and the Congress at his poll rallies.

Amit Shah had also accused the Congress of being a party of "raja-rani" and said there is no place for royals in a democracy anymore.

However, Anirudh Singh of the Koti royal family feels that for the current generation of voters, it does not matter whether one is a royal or a commoner, what matters is one's conduct.

"If you work for people, people will develop a liking for you. If you stay like a commoner despite being a royal, people will prefer you and the liking will grow," he told PTI.

Anirudh Singh does not feel it is a disadvantage being a royal as one is not born in such a family by choice.

Maheshwar Singh, 73, a scion of the Kullu royal family who has been in politics for more than four decades, says royalties have long gone after Maharaja Ranjit Singh's time and they have no place in a democracy.

Maheshwar Singh, who was replaced as the BJP candidate from Kullu after his son filed his nominations as an independent from the nearby Banjar seat, withdrew his nomination as an independent in favour of the ruling party's candidate.

He said gone are the days of rajas and maharajas and in a democracy, only those will be respected who serve the electorate well.

"No one votes for you because you are a raja these days. They will respect you only as per your conduct. In a democracy, it is a disadvantage being a royal. People will only vote for you if you do their work and serve them well," he told PTI.

"I am just a 'ghulam' of Raghunathji and hold the Lord's sacred 'chhadi' as his 'chowkidar' during Dussehra in accordance with tradition. I also deter people from addressing me as a raja," he said.

According to tradition, the Kullu royal holds the sacred "chhadi" of Lord Raghunath during the annual 10-day Dussehra festival.

Ramesh, a small shopkeeper in Una's Talliwal, says the royals continue to hold sway over the voters of the hill state as they are still revered by the locals.

"How can one ignore the royals who have been the rulers in different kingdoms of Himachal Pradesh? They will continue to influence the common people," he said.

Ashok Kumar from Solan, however, feels that the royals had their sway in the past and now is the time for the common people to rule through merit.

"No one can claim to be special these days because he was born in a royal family. It is merit that matters and anyone serving people well will be preferred," he said.

Rahul from Nalagarh says royalty is a passe now and asserts that politics has to be "clean" if the state and the country have to progress.

Those with a clean record should come forward and honesty should be rewarded by people, he says.

As the royals rough it out on the roads of Himachal, away from the comforts of their palaces, the BJP is cautioning the voters against the "feudal submission" to the "princely" candidates of the Congress.

With political parties playing their own games in the run-up to the polls, voters also admit that royalty has deep roots in the rural hinterland of Himachal Pradesh.

Whether the royals in the fray continue to hold a mighty sway on the hearts of voters, only time will tell.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)