Battle of wits & vitriol in Rajasthan's Jat Bastion: Mirdha-Beniwal rematch in Nagaur but players have switched sides

File Photo of Hanuman Beniwal

In the intense political duels in Rajasthan’s Lok Sabha polls, perhaps the most searing showdown is in Nagaur, the stronghold of Jat politics. With the fiery Hanuman Beniwal and the spunky Jyoti Mirdha locking horns again, Nagaur is witnessing fierce verbal clashes accompanied with razor-sharp tactics to secure victory in an electoral combat where neither side is willing to concede an inch.

What makes the battle in this Jat bastion more fascinating is that it's a rematch of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections – except that the central protagonists have switched political allegiance! In 2019, Beniwal in alliance with the BJP had defeated the-then Congress candidate Mirdha by nearly two lakh votes. Five years later, while the same two faces are contesting in Nagaur, political equations have completely changed. Mirdha, who switched sides before last year’s Assembly elections in Rajasthan, is now the BJP candidate while Beniwal is opposing her with the support of the Congress and the INDIA alliance.

As the two heavyweights clash again, an air of unfinished business hangs over this prestige battle in Nagaur, widely regarded as the epicentre of Jat politics in Rajasthan. Though neither side is sparing any effort in pulling punches, no two candidates could be as widely differing as Jyoti and Hanuman – while Mirdha is essentially a political legatee, Beniwal prides on being a strong, self-made leader.

The 51-year-old Jyoti belongs to the powerful Mirdha family which has dominated Nagaur politics for decades. She is the grand-daughter of Congress stalwart Nathuram Mirdha who was the party’s strongman for decades and represented Nagaur in the Lok Sabha for six terms between 1971 and 1996. Even during the Janata Party wave of 1977, Nathuram had emerged victorious in Nagaur, the only seat the Congress won in that election in Rajasthan!

In contrast, 52-year-old Hanuman Beniwal fashions himself as a rebellious outsider who has become one of the most influential Jat-farmer leaders in Rajasthan over the past decade. He heads the Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP) and is a four-time MLA in Rajasthan and the MP from Nagaur.Frank and forthright Beniwal is particularly popular among the region’s farmers and youth. He walked out of the NDA in 2020, demanding repeal of the contentious farm laws during the farmers’ agitation in Delhi.

While Mirdha and Beniwal are prominent Jat leaders, charges of betrayal and lack of political commitment are flying thick and fast in the Nagaur battlefield. Given their bitter rivalry, lots of vitriol is constantly spicing up this contest. Both have sought to highlight their respective strengths while targeting the perceived weaknesses of the opponent. If Beniwal has criticized Mirdha's family-dynasty politics and her lack of connect with ground realities, Mirdha has questioned Beniwal's credibility and raises concerns about his party's ideological flip-flops.

One of the sharpest exchanges erupted over Mirdha’s recent remarks on changing the Constitution. With her video going viral where she urged voters to give a huge majority to the BJP to facilitate constitutional amendments, Beniwal argued that Jyoti’s “statement makes it clear that the BJP is bent on finishing Babasaheb’s Constitution.” While Mirdha claimed her statement was being distorted, even Congress stalwarts like Shashi Tharoor and Jairam Ramesh slammed her comments as part of a “deliberate strategy” since “the BJP’s aim is to change the Constitution.”

Days later, Mirdha got into trouble over another controversial remark where in appealing for votes, she spoke about the “Thali” belt of Nagaur and equated its Khinvsar area with Taliban. Beniwal was quick to seize the opportunity and claimed “such statements have no place in a democracy and this statement is condemnable.” Besides demanding action from the Election Commission, he asked PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah to “publicly apologize” for Mirdha’s offensive remarks. Dubbing Jyoti as a “tourist who visits Nagaur only during elections”, Beniwal argued that Mirdha was unaware that “Khinvsar is that sacred land” where local folk deity “Tejaji Maharaj, who sacrificed his life to protect cows, was born.”

The Mirdha-Beniwal duo are also duelling over their parliamentary performance. Beniwal repeatedly targets Mirdha over her lack of attendance in Lok Sabha and her failure to utilize her MPLAD funds, which he claims rolled on to him and he used for projects in Nagaur during his tenure. Statistics show that though Mirdha is 3% ahead in attendance, Beniwal is way ahead of Mirdha in asking questions and taking part in Lok Sabha debates. Given her edge in attendance, Mirdha is now keen to embarrass her rival and asserts, “I challenge that if my Lok Sabha attendance is less than his, I will get my head shaved. And if his attendance is lower, he should shave his beard, mustache and head.”

While the Lok Sabha combatants engage in a high-voltage campaign, Nagaur remains a typical backward region of Rajasthan. Water shortage is a chronic crisis here, the lack of development is visible in most parts of this constituency and as employment opportunities remain scarce, most youngsters are forced to migrate in search of jobs.

Far from addressing these basic issues, Mirdha and Beniwal seem more focused on their verbal slugfest. As they attack each other relentlessly, it's tough to say who is ahead as both have their core strengths and weaknesses. While Beniwal has a strong grassroots connect and a robust hold over youth voters/farmers, many see him as a maverick - spirited but unreliable. And of course, the ‘Modi factor’ that worked for him in the last election, now seems his biggest hurdle. In contrast, Jyoti has her family legacy, the PM’s popularity and the Ram Mandir appeal working for her. But many voters disapprove of her political switch and with several local BJP leaders also unhappy, fears of internal sabotage may well be one of Mirdha’s biggest threats.

With Mirdha and Beniwal both from the community, the tussle for Jat votes in Nagaur is ferocious. Besides Jats as the dominant votebank, the constituency also has a large chunk of Muslims and SC voters who have traditionally voted for the Congress. Now, will his alliance with the Congress ensure a shift in favour of Beniwal? Or can Mirdha despite being in the BJP retain her original Congress-connect and ride to success on Modi magic? THAT is the critical question which may well decide the fate of this riveting electoral battle!