If Royalties still ruled, history would have laughed and scripts would have been written describing the ‘turnaround of the century’ in Rajasthan. Two metallic gates would have become witnesses as to how the famous Rajgharana of Jaipur despairingly used the Rajput name and brazenly took advantage and sympathetic support of the community for their self-centered interests.
The drama began on August 24, after the Jaipur Development Authority sealed the marriage garden entrance of the Rajmahal Palace since a portion of the sprawling heritage hotel complex was falling into land acquired by the government. The action was termed arbitrary by the royal family and what followed next was huge hue and cry about the ‘injustice’ done to the Royals.
While the common man remained least bit dispassionate of any sort of performance done by the Rajgharana, the people who suffered the most were members of the Rajput Community. History has repeated itself twenty years later. The centre of the controversy remains the same – Princess Diya Kumari. Two decades back, the entire Rajput community had isolated the Jaipur Royal family bringing their stature and political power to shreds. The Rajput community believed that Rajkumari Diya Kumari had brought disgrace to the community and cheated them by marrying Narendra Singh who belonged to the same gautra, or in other words, she had married her own brother.
Today, the Rajput community stands tricked, yet again. Titular queen Rajmata Padmini Devi had addressed a gathering inside the walled city on Thursday, to garner support for the royal family against the Government’s alleged ‘unjust’ action. Diya Kumari did not personally take part in the protest. But her 73-year-old mother, Rajmata Padmini Devi, and son Padmanabh Singh, 18, the family’s heir, led the march. The Rajput community, in hope for a long-lasting association with the Royals, came out on the streets and stood by the Rajmaata and the new-prince-on-the-block. Just as the Rajput community was trying to prepare for a strength of show against the Government, Padmini Devi, to their utmost shock, met Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje in late hours a day later and requested her to look into the matter.
A feeling of disbelief swept through the Rajput communities all over. It obviously is disappointing to see the Royal family use the Rajputs for a mere show of strength when all they really wanted to do was reconcile/negotiate/plead Vasundhara Raje to open the gates to their expansive Rajmahal Palace. But why did the Vasundhara Raje open those gates? One could assume that the Rajasthan Chief Minister really did not have anything to do with the whole fiasco since Raje’s known to be averse to the royal dramas. If facts are looked at, Late Bhawani Singh had already sold that piece of land to the Gandhi Grah Nirmaan Sahkari Samiti, which the samiti had subsequently handed over to JDA in 1992, so the royal family members do not even have the right to be a party in this matter. In spite of the matter being under sub-judice, the Royals went out and developed a marriage garden on the disputed land. When the facts began coming out in the open and people started asking questions, the royal family started getting worried.
In desperation, they reached out to Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, against whose Government they had made a public show. Known for being unflinchingly just, Vasundhara Raje asked for a committee to be made to look into the matter. A committee of four ministers – Rajpal Shekhawat, Gajendra Singh Rathore, Rajendra Rathore and Ashok Parnami was made to ensure a transparent resolution of the case. Fearful of irreparable consequences and damage to the public image of the Royals, Rajmata Padmini Devi sought an appointment with Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, met her at the Chief Minister’s residence and again pleaded her to open the gates in question to save both their face and grace. One could certainly see the emotion of relief on the face of Padmini Devi when she stepped out of CM Raje’s residence and said – “We have full faith in Vasundhara Raje. Ab sab theek ho jayega! (All will be fine now)”.
CM Vasundhara Raje held intensive discussions with the committee and advice was solicited from Additional Attorney General Rajendra Prasad as well. Given that the case is sub-judice and awaiting final hearing, it is evident that Raje did not want to intervene at any cost. However, on recommendations given by members and the fact that the gate in question is a significant entry of the property, the committee advised Raje to open the gates till an alternate medium of passage is developed. In such a situation, Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, to safeguard the rights of the State and JDA along with ensuring nil impact on a case pending in the court of law, may have considered all aspects and allowed JDA to open the said gates until an alternative arrangement is made.
This hoodwinking of the Rajgharana may have been intended to create a platform to launch the fresh Maharaja who has recently turned eighteen. People looking at the opening of the gates as a victory for the Royals are widely mislead by the Royal facade. The Royal family knows that they’ve hidden the facts both in the court of law and of the people. Vasundhara Raje is known to have antipathy towards the deceitful lot. It is clear that the Raje Government has not compromised and it does not look as if they would any time soon. The Government has may have given the Royals some time, but the entire episode seems to have fallen flat on their faces. They turned an issue into ego-uproars and self-promotions. When the truth comes out, which it would soon, the Royal Rajgharana may have nowhere to go.
