With the BJP calling the alleged “protocol breach” during President Droupadi Murmu’s recent visit to West Bengal an “insult to tribals” and targeting the Trinamool Congress (TMC) on the issue ahead of the Assembly polls, a political contest is intensifying between the two parties to woo tribal voters in the state.
BJP leaders said they expected the controversy to influence the state’s 16 Scheduled Tribe (ST)-reserved Assembly seats, where the party and the incumbent TMC were closely matched in 2021. The TMC had won nine of these seats, while the BJP secured seven. A similar pattern was seen in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, with the TMC leading in nine of these Assembly segments and BJP in seven.
While the TMC has maintained a marginally higher overall vote share in ST-reserved seats in Bengal, the BJP’s winning margins have often been slightly stronger. In the 2016 Assembly polls, the BJP won just one ST-reserved seat by a margin of 22,038 votes and secured 17.39% of the vote across such seats. The TMC, by contrast, won 13 seats with an average margin of 21,945 votes and a vote share of 44.1%.
In 2021, the BJP’s average victory margin across its seven ST seats was 20,231 votes — slightly higher than the TMC’s 20,046 across nine seats. However, the TMC’s vote share stood at 45.23%, marginally ahead of BJP’s 44.04%. Additionally, four ST candidates were elected from unreserved seats — two from the BJP, one from the TMC, and one Independent.
Two constituencies — Nagrakata and Sandeshkhali — have since shown shifts in political trends. The BJP, which had won Nagrakata in 2021, fell behind in the Lok Sabha polls, with TMC taking the lead. Conversely, the BJP moved ahead in Sandeshkhali, a seat won by TMC in the Assembly elections.
In 2024, the BJP’s average lead margin was 17,604 votes in seven seats as compared to the TMC’s 15,379 in nine seats. The TMC retained a marginally higher vote share of 44.62% against BJP’s 44.15%.
While 15 ST-reserved seats will go to polls in the first phase on April 23, Sandeshkhali will vote in the second and final phase on April 29. The state has a total of 294 seats.
In its first list of candidates, the BJP announced nominees for 13 ST-reserved seats, including six sitting MLAs. The party replaced candidates in six of the seven seats it had lost in 2021, retaining only the Ranibandh candidate.
The TMC, in its candidate list, replaced nominees in 12 ST seats, including five it had previously won.
President protocol row
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, speaking at a rally in Kolkata recently, accused the TMC of “crossing all limits” by “insulting” President Murmu, alleging that the party had disrespected not just the Head of State but also the tribal community and the Constitution.
Responding to Murmu’s remarks on the alleged protocol lapses, Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee said: “We respect you. But don’t play politics on the BJP’s advice during elections. You did not speak about SIR (special intensive revision of electoral rolls). How many tribal names have been removed from the voter list? Kindly find out.”
According to the 2011 Census, the tribal population in Bengal stands at over 53 lakh, accounting for about 5.8% of the state’s total population. Tribal communities are concentrated in districts such as Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar, Dakshin Dinajpur, Paschim Medinipur, Bankura and Purulia.
State BJP spokesperson Bimal Sankar Nanda said the presidential protocol “breach” has resonated among tribal voters and was being highlighted in campaign speeches and on social media. “The recent incident has not gone down well among tribal people. It will have an impact in the upcoming elections,” he said, adding that tribals are “natural supporters” of the BJP.
Rejecting the charge, TMC spokesperson Arup Chakraborty said there had been no insult to the President. “People of Bengal understand the reality. The state respects Droupadi Murmu. It is unfortunate that BJP is trying to use the President’s office for its political agenda,” he said.
Chakraborty also argued that tribal voters were not aligned with the BJP, pointing to TMC’s performance in tribal-dominated constituencies such as Jhargram, Bankura and Midnapore in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. He further cited a past controversy involving Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, who had allegedly made remarks against tribal leader Birbaha Hansda — an allegation he denied.
ST seats in other poll-bound states
In Assam, 16 of the 126 Assembly seats were reserved for STs in 2021. The BJP won nine seats, while its ally UPPL secured five. The Congress and its ally BPF won one seat each. Additionally, seven tribal MLAs were elected from unreserved seats.
A shift in political equations emerged recently when UPPL chief Pramod Boro entered the Assembly poll fray outside the NDA fold, effectively ending the party’s alliance with BJP after the latter tied up with the BPF.
In Kerala and Tamil Nadu, there are two ST-reserved seats each. In 2021, the seats in Kerala were split between the CPI(M) and the Congress, while in Tamil Nadu, one seat each was won by the DMK and the AIADMK.