In the 2023 assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Congress managed to overturn BJP’s long-standing dominance in the Malwa-Nimar region. This was made possible largely thanks to the tribals in the area switching their allegiance after having backed the BJP to a large extent in the previous three elections. The STs, which hold sway in 28 seats of the region, helped Congress secure a whopping 21 seats in the 2018 elections. Outlook’s Abhik Bhattacharya talked to Dr Yatindra Singh Sisodia, the director of the Madhya Pradesh Institute of Social Science Research in Ujjain to discuss the community’s priorities in the upcoming polls. The BJP government has tried to woo the tribals by highlighting the special protections granted to them under the PESA and similar acts while also celebrating the legacies of tribal icons such as Tantya Bhil and Birsa Munda. However, this may not be enough to sway the community back from the folds of the Congress, which insists that most of the pro-tribal laws date back to its regimes.
Video: Dinesh Parab
#MadhyaPradeshElection2023 #MadhyaPradesh #Tribals #BJP #Congress #BirsaMunda #Expert
Video: Dinesh Parab
#MadhyaPradeshElection2023 #MadhyaPradesh #Tribals #BJP #Congress #BirsaMunda #Expert
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00:00 Hi, this is a big butcher here from outlook magazine
00:02 So today we are here at a Jen as you know that for the last few days
00:07 We have been roaming around in the western, but the pradesh to understand the politics of Malwa Nima region
00:13 That's the one of the major or the most important regions for this mother this has some elections
00:17 So today we are here to understand that what is the importance of Malwa Nima region?
00:22 And not only that it is said that among the 47 st seats
00:27 Whoever is going to win or whoever is going to gain out of this 47th
00:31 It's the seats they are going to form the mother to this government to understand
00:34 What is the what is the actual ground reality or what are the major political?
00:39 Political thoughts that actually work behind this sort of narratives we have come to a Jen
00:45 But the Pradesh Institute of Social Science Research and today we have with us the director of mother traditions to social science research
00:52 Dr. C. So the air so welcome
00:54 so
00:56 we will like to understand that as
00:58 Saying that there are 47 st
01:01 Seats and it is being said that for the from the last 20 years
01:05 It is seen that whenever any party gains in this they form the government
01:10 So why do you think it is so important this 47 seats and Adivasis how determine the whole political situation of?
01:16 Yeah, but the Pradesh should always be seen in terms of the reasons and there are
01:24 different reasons, but the tribal concentration is confined to
01:29 the Malwa Nimaad region another is the Vindi region and
01:34 the Makosa region the highest
01:38 sizable presence of
01:41 the tribal constituency is from the tribal Nimaadi and
01:45 out of 28 seats last time the Congress was able to garner 21 seats and
01:53 That is the change
01:55 maker in terms of 2018 results and
01:58 we have seen in the state of mother place in the last 20 years that
02:03 BJP was getting extraordinarily good results from
02:07 these reason in 20
02:10 2003 2008 2013 and
02:14 when this
02:16 Table was turned in 2018 the result came in favor of Congress
02:22 So these 47 seats are going to be very very decisive in terms of even
02:29 2023 results and
02:32 the major narrative which has been created by the
02:37 Sentiments of the individuals even BJP has tried hard to address the issue of the tribals
02:44 They are calling the Adivasi as one Vasi
02:48 they have given they have tried to revoke the
02:52 Pesa very
02:55 Important progressive law which is meant for the tribal population. Yes. Yes, they have even
03:02 Given due witness to Tatya Bhil and Mirza Munda and all that
03:07 so reason is very specific that they want to capture the
03:12 tribal vote but tribal
03:17 Affinity in terms of the vote is not always in favor of
03:22 only BJP
03:25 they have been giving vote to Congress and
03:28 This is what we have seen in 2018 and there is no big
03:33 reason that
03:35 The en masse vote is going to change in favor of BJP in
03:40 2023 so this tricky situation is going to take the final call in terms of the results of
03:47 2023 and
03:49 It is not practically possible to get such a mammoth victory
03:55 for BJP in tribalism because
03:58 all the major surveys which have taken place in the last few months are suggesting that
04:04 the tribal regions
04:07 Congress is gaining and if this is what the filler is coming from the
04:12 people surveys or opinion polls, then it shows that
04:17 despite all efforts the
04:20 BJP's situation is not
04:24 Extraordinarily well in this region, but the last
04:29 Result is going to be the determined fact a determinant factor for
04:36 both Congress and BJP in this region
04:38 It's a good lastly one thing. So that as as you rightly said that the very working fifth schedule
04:45 They're working face are but Congress is even promising that they're going to give
04:49 Us currently right for the last few years
04:57 So do you think it's
05:03 Actually possible to to mark the sixth schedule area or is it just a hollow promise?
05:09 What do you see?
05:09 No
05:10 Look, if you look at the decentralization the decentralization has taken place in the time of Congress and
05:17 Madhya Pradesh was the first state to implement both 73rd Amendment Act and
05:22 Likewise the case of Peshak Act. Peshak Act was in fact came into being in the year
05:29 1997 and Madhya Pradesh was the first state in 1998 to implement the Peshak and now the new rules are framed
05:37 So Peshak is not a new
05:39 for the tribal community
05:42 Peshak has a history of 25 years
05:45 so now both the major political parties are making their own claims in terms of
05:51 the best they have done for the tribal community, but
05:56 now
05:59 the election has gone into a very close fight and
06:02 This close fight is going to be very strong decider
06:07 And the victory margin will be very very minimal in this time
06:12 as well as we have seen in
06:15 so
06:17 the crucial factors or defectors or dissenters or rebellions or
06:22 saboteurs are going to
06:26 Change the scenario for any potential winning candidate
06:30 Thank you. Thanks a lot after so there so you can you can understand that what is the politics over there in the
06:36 Malwa-Nima region how the tribal votes are going to actually determine who is going to take over the last in the next
06:43 election so in this context I like to conclude through some some observations that when when we were across roaming around this
06:53 Malwa-Nima region and we were trying to understand the internal politics as as Dr.
06:57 Sisewiya rightly says there is a sort of you know inclination toward Congress that that can be seen but still
07:06 the way the other surveys in the last few days or rather
07:10 You
07:12 [BLANK_AUDIO]