Maharashtra elections:Cong banks on SC-minority-tribals

Facing a stiff challenge from the BJP, the Congress is banking on the return of its traditional Scheduled Castes-Minority-Tribal voters to come up trumps in the upcoming Maharashtra assembly elections.

Congress election managers believe that there is a strong sense of resentment against the BJP-led government, particularly on account of its handling of the recent flood situation in the western parts of the state and the severe drought in Marathwada region.

“There is tremendous unrest among the scheduled castes, tribals and minorities against the BJP-Shiv Sena government and will be our endeavour to reach out to them,” Nana Patole, the Chairman of the Congress' Campaign Committee for the Maharashtra elections, told DH here.

Patole had already undertaken a 'Pol Khol Yatra' in which he tailed Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis during his 'Mahajanadesh Yatra', addressing rallies at the same places where the BJP leader to “expose the misdeeds of the government”.

Last year, farmers and tribals from north Maharashtra had taken out foot marches to state capital Mumbai to highlight their issues such as right to farmland and better opportunities for education and healthcare.

However, the Maharashtra Congress is now faced with twin challenges – to energise the workers demoralised after the Lok Sabha defeat and tackle factionalism and revolt by a section of the leadership ahead of the October 21 Assembly elections.

In reaching out to its core support base of scheduled castes-minorities-tribals, Congress is also facing tough competition from Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), led by Babasaheb Ambedkar's grandson Prakash Ambedkar, the Shramajeevi Sangathana led by Vivek Pandit, who works in the area of tribal welfare and Asaduddin Owaisi's All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM).

The VBA-AIMIM alliance cost the Congress at least nine seats in the Lok Sabha elections. The Congress managed to win only one seat in the state where it had ruled with a firm hand for decades together.