CHANDIGARH: Om Prakash Chautala, the 89-year-old former five-time Chief Minister of Haryana and president of the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), passed away today in Gurugram. A prominent leader of the Jat community, Chautala’s political career was marked by both achievements and controversies, including a jail term.
Born on 1 January 1935, Chautala was the eldest son of former Deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal. He suffered a cardiac arrest at his Gurugram residence and was rushed to hospital but could not be saved. His last public appearance was during the Haryana Assembly elections on 5 October, where he was seen at a polling booth in Chautala village in the Sirsa district.
Chautala served as Haryana’s Chief Minister for five terms: from 2 December 1989 to 22 May 1990, from 1 July 1990 to 17 July 1990, from 22 March 1991 to 6 April 1991, and from 24 July 1999 to 5 March 2005. The 1999–2005 term was the only full tenure he enjoyed. He also participated in alliances with both the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Third Front at the national level.
Chautala’s career took a significant hit when he was convicted in 2013 in a teacher recruitment scam involving the illegal appointment of 3,206 junior basic teachers in 2000 during the INLD’s rule. A special CBI court sentenced Chautala, his son Ajay, and 53 others, including an IAS officer, to varying jail terms. Chautala was serving a 10-year prison sentence when he was released from Tihar Jail in July 2021, having already been out on parole.
He is survived by his three children: sons Abhay Singh Chautala and Ajay Singh Chautala, and daughter Sunita Chautala. His wife, Sneh Lata, passed away in August 2019.
Chautala’s father, Chaudhary Devi Lal, played a pivotal role in Haryana’s creation in 1966, later becoming Chief Minister and Deputy Prime Minister. He founded the INLD in 1996. Though Chautala could not match his father’s stature, he was admired for his sharp political acumen despite his limited formal education.
When Devi Lal became Deputy Prime Minister in 1989, Chautala succeeded him as Haryana’s Chief Minister. Chautala was elected as an MLA six times, first from Ellenabad in Sirsa in 1970, a Chautala family stronghold. He also represented Narwana, Uchana Kalan, Dabwali, and Rori constituencies during his career.
Chautala’s son, Abhay Singh Chautala, is a former MLA from the Ellenabad constituency and served as Leader of the Opposition in the Haryana Assembly from October 2014 to March 2019. His grandson, Dushyant Chautala, was a former Deputy Chief Minister and a former Member of Parliament for the Hisar constituency.
The Chautala family’s influence extended further, with his younger brothers, Pratap and Ranjit Chautala, also serving as MLAs, and his nephew Aditya Devi Lal currently holding an INLD MLA seat.
The “Meham Kand” incident in 1990 was one of the most controversial episodes of Chautala’s career. Large-scale violence erupted in the Meham Assembly constituency during his campaign, resulting in allegations of voter intimidation and the killing of a rebel Lok Dal leader and seven others. The polls in Meham were postponed three times due to the unrest, and the event remains infamous in Haryana’s political history.
After 2005, the INLD lost its grip on Haryana politics, facing consistent electoral setbacks. In December 2018, Chautala’s elder son, Ajay Chautala, split from the INLD to form the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP). The JJP allied with the BJP in 2019 to form the state government but ended the alliance in March 2024 after Nayab Singh Saini replaced Manohar Lal Khattar as Chief Minister.
Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini expressed condolences, saying: “His contribution to state politics will always be remembered.”
Chautala’s grandson and former Deputy Chief Minister, Dushyant Chautala, was present at the hospital along with other family members. INLD leaders and workers gathered at the hospital upon hearing the news of the veteran leader’s passing.