Decoding Politics: 4 reasons why 3 tribal groups figured in PM’s MP speech

The numbers

These three tribes constitute 8% of the state’s total ST population, which stands at 21%. In the 2018 polls, the BJP could win only 16 of the 47 ST seats; the Congress got 30.

The result could explain the BJP’s interest in planning outreach initiatives to secure the tribal vote. Apart from this scheme, the party has also been celebrating tribal icons such as Rani Durgavati, Shankar Shah and his son Raghunath Shah.

The three tribes

* The Baiga tribe: Residing in eastern Madhya Pradesh’s Mahakoshal region, comprising the Mandla, Baihar (Balaghat), Dindori and Shahdol districts, this group is believed to have originated from the Bhumia Tribe of the Chota Nagpur Plateau. The tribe’s source of livelihood is forest produce. They are known to have a vast knowledge of medicinal herbs. As per the 2011 Census, the tribe is over 4 lakh in number.

* The Bhaira tribe: This community lives in the Patalkot district, which is located 78 km from Chhindwara, the constituency of Congress party president Kamal Nath. Largely cut off from the other tribes in the region, the Bharias stay in a horse–shoe shaped valley surrounded by hills. They are estimated to be 1.9 lakh in number.

* The Saharia tribe: The group lives in northern Madhya Pradesh, mostly in the Gwalior, Datia, Sheopur, Bhind, Morena, Shivpuri, Guna and Ashok Nagar districts. The main sources of livelihood for this group, at 6.1 lakh in number, are agriculture, daily wage labour, collecting and selling of minor forest products like honey, tendu leaf, mahua, and medicinal plants.

Why Mahakoshal

With 38 Assembly seats, including seven in Kamal Nath’s bastion of Chhindwara district, the Mahakoshal region has been an area of interest for the BJP. In 2018, the Congress won 24 seats here as compared to the BJP’s 13. In 2013, the script was the reverse — the BJP had won 24 seats, while the Congress was limited to 13.

Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s popular Ladli Behna scheme could also potentially pay off dividends in this region, with women outnumbering their male counterparts in at least 18 of the 230 Assembly seats, including in tribal-dominated areas of Mahakoshal like Balaghat, Mandla and Dindori. The Baiga and Bharia tribes are said to hold sway in as many as 16 ST seats.

The importance of Northern MP

The BJP has traditionally performed well in the region — it won 16 of the 34 seats here in 2008 and 20 in 2013 — but faced a setback in the 2018 polls. That election, the Congress, riding on its promise of farm loan waivers and people’s expectation that Scindia would become CM, walked away with 26 seats. But as Scindia crossed over in 2020 with some of his supporters, including 22 MLAs, the BJP improved its tally to 16 seats. HL: Decoding Politics: 4 reasons why 3 tribal groups figured in PM’s MP speech