In Madhya Pradesh, 82 reserved seats hold key to securing power
As political campaigning heats up in Madhya Pradesh, which goes to polls on November 28, the two main parties in the fray—the Bharatiya Janta Party and Congress—have pulled out all stops to win over the scheduled caste and tribe voters.
In tribal dominated Dindori district, 470 kilometres south east of Bhopal, the ‘dashgotra’ or 10th day ritual after a death is an opportunity that political parties wouldn’t miss. The event is well attended to show support to the bereaved. Party workers use it as an opportunity to mingle with the adivasis. In Jhabua, another tribal dominated district 341 kilometres south west of Bhopal, a khantla sabha, or a meeting between political candidates and adivasis usually over tea and snacks, is set to begin over the weekend.
As campaigning heats up in Madhya Pradesh, which goes to polls on November 28, the two main parties in the fray—the Bharatiya Janta Party and Congress—have pulled out all stops to win over the scheduled caste and tribe voters. The reason: central to gaining power in the state is 82 reserved seats, 47 for scheduled tribes and 35 for scheduled castes, out of the total 230.
This includes tribal-dominated regions such as Shahdol, Dindori, Mandla, Alirajpur and Jhabua, and scheduled caste-dominated areas include Bhind, Morena, Tikamgarh, Rewa, and Raisen among others. As per the 2011 census, scheduled castes constitute 15.6% and scheduled tribes 21.1 % of the state’s 7.26 crore population.
In the 2013 assembly elections, BJP won 59 of these seats—31 ST and 28 SC reserved seats, while Congress won 15 and four respectively. In the 2008 assembly elections, when Congress had improved its performance in comparison to 2003 state polls, the BJP had won 54 SC/ST seats, compared to the Congress’s 26. The BJP’s dominance over these seats began in the 2003 assembly elections, when due to a strong anti-incumbency wave against Congress, BJP won as many as 67 of the SC/ST seats, while Congress won only five that year.
“Any party which wins about 60 of the 82 seats can be confident enough to form its government,” said a senior BJP leader who did not wish to be named. He said that the BJP is focussed on retaining the SC/ST seats, given that anti-incumbency could mean that the party may not be able to increase its tally in the state.
“I will vote for a party which can bring about a change in our life and protect us from moneylenders’ malpractices,” said Gannalal Parmar, an adivasi from Jhabua.
The BJP’s dominance over these seats is attributed to the work that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the ideological parent of the BJP, as well as its affiliated organisations like Vanvasi Kalyan Parishad have been doing in these areas. Central government schemes such as the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna and state schemes like Ladli Laxmi Yojna and the Sambal Yojna, which was introduced this year offering a number of benefits like financial assistance during and after delivery, are touted by party workers, said a senior BJP leader who did not wish to be named.
State Congress spokesperson Bhupendra Gupta said the party manifesto promises lease rights to adivasis and nutrition allowance for most backward adivasi groups to be raised to ₹1,500 from the existing ₹1,000.
A former office-bearer of Gondwana Gantantra Party Dheerendra Dheeru said whatever the political parties said about their ideologies and principles, they mainly wooed tribal votes through money and liquor.
The Bahujan Samaj Party which got four seats in the 2013 assembly elections hopes to win a good number of seats this time. “The weaker section has realised that whether it’s BJP or Congress they have betrayed them”, said BSP state chief Pradeep Ahirwar.
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