Once the late Ram Singh Bishnoi was the undisputed leader of Bishnoi community in the desert region but now his son and suspended Congress MLA Malkhan Singh is struggling to come out clean in the case of missing nurse Bhanwari Devi. His younger brother Parasram Bishnoi has been languishing in Jodhpur central jail for his alleged involvement in the case while sister Indira Bishnoi disappeared after the CBI summoned her. “Our community became leader less, says S.K. Bishnoi, a community elder and social worker in Jodhpur.
Malkhan’s late father Ram Singh Bishnoi led the All-India Bishnoi Mahasabha as its president and served as minister for a long time with chief minister Ashok Gehlot and other Congress chief ministers. But this is not the first time when his sons and daughter landed in controversy. In 2002, late Ram Singh Bishnoi’s younger son Parasram was booked by the director of revenue intelligence (DRI). The incident forced late Ram Singh to step down from his ministerial position.
The case under NDPS Act against Parasram is still pending in Mumbai and the DRI sought Parasram’s custody through production warrant. The CBI also summoned Indira Bishnoi in connection with the Bhanwari Devi case. She has disappeared after three rounds of questioning by the agency. The CBI also questioned Parasram’s wife Kusum, who is pradhan in Jodhpur district.
In 1986, late Ram Singh Bishnoi resigned from then Cabinet when his daughter Indira went in public, complaining against his father for her forced marriage with a Bishnoi boy. Late Ram Singh’s son Malkhan stepped in his father’s shoes when the Congress fielded him from his father’s Luni constituency in 2008. He won the election and became MLA but observers say he failed to carry on the legacy of his late father.
The Bishnois, known as wildlife lovers and conservationists, traditionally support the Congress but the BJP also made inroads in the villages dominated by the Bishnois. The BJP picked Jaswant Singh Bishnoi and promoted him as leader of his community.