What BJP plans to achieve with its 3-day tribal outreach in Gujarat

A “confidential” booklet circulated by the party lays out itineraries covering every taluka in the tribal constituencies. The mandate is to saturate the tribal belt, popularly known as the “Poorvi Patti”, stretching from Ambaji in the north to Umargam in the south, with the BJP’s “Viksit Bharat” narrative and counter the Opposition.

The Congress held sway over much of the belt until 2017, when it won 17 of the 27 ST seats. Its ally, the Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP), won two and the BJP eight. In 2022, however, the BJP won 23 seats, reducing the Congress to three, while the AAP won one. The AAP made its entry into the belt when Chaitar Vasava won Dediapada in Narmada district by a landslide in his electoral debut. All four ST-reserved Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat are currently held by the BJP.

The outreach comes amid continuing questions over implementation of the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA), land rights and tribal identity.

The proposed Gujarat Uniform Civil Code (UCC), expected to be implemented before the 2027 election, excludes STs as well as persons and groups whose customary rights are protected under Part XXI of the Constitution. The debate, however, has continued to fuel wider concerns over customary rights and tribal identity.

“Our MLAs, MPs and ministers will spend 72 hours in their respective areas, covering every taluka and staying overnight in villages,” Mansukh Vasava, BJP MP from Bharuch, told The Indian Express. “From encouraging children at Anganwadis to explaining the benefits of the Pradhan Mantri Kusum Yojana, solar power and the establishment of tribal universities, the focus is on showcasing our work.”

Vasava, a seven-term MP, said the exercise would also help identify organisational weaknesses. “Good work has been done, and the party is absolutely strong. But there are shortcomings on the part of people like us, the organisational workers, and opponents have taken advantage of them. This programme will give us an insight. Whatever needs to be corrected, we will do it,” he said.

Organisational concerns

The BJP’s organisational concerns were visible in Narmada district earlier this year, when Nandod MLA Darshana Deshmukh had a public spat with district leaders and sat on a dharna in June. Vasava backed her. The BJP has since replaced the Narmada district unit chief.

A senior BJP leader associated with the party’s Tribal Morcha said the exercise would allow leaders to assess issues that may not emerge during conventional political programmes.

“Leaders will hear grievances, see how government programmes are reaching beneficiaries and identify areas where the party’s local organisation is falling short,” the leader said. “When leaders move, stay overnight and travel through the areas, local workers cannot micro-manage responses from people in the same way.”

The party is particularly conscious of areas where the Opposition retains a presence. The April local body polls exposed some of these gaps, with the BJP suffering setbacks in Narmada, Bharuch and Chhota Udepur districts.

Signs of discontent

Two developments in the tribal belt have also concerned the BJP.

In August, tribal farmers from 12 villages in Sagbara taluka of Narmada district protested over rights to cultivate forest land in neighbouring Umarpada taluka of Surat district.

The Forest Department has maintained that cultivation is subject to the Forest Rights Act and gram sabha resolutions. The dispute has been complicated by the administrative boundary between Narmada and Surat districts.

Although the protest has ended, the issue continues to provide an opening for the Congress. State Congress president Amit Chavda, MLA Anant Patel and former chief minister Shankersinh Vaghela visited Khopi on October 2 and backed the farmers.

Another concern emerged in December 2025, when an organisation calling itself the AC Bharat Sarkar Sangathan, with roots in South Gujarat’s Tapi district, surfaced in Banaskantha. The group was booked for allegedly assaulting government officials in Padaliya village. Claiming to reject all forms of authority, it was also reported to have influenced more than 200 people to surrender election and ration cards, though officials later persuaded them to take the documents back.

AAP’s challenge

The Congress’s decline has created space for AAP, particularly in Narmada. In the April local body polls, AAP won 15 of 22 seats in the Narmada district panchayat and secured the Dediapada, Sagbara, Garudeshwar and newly created Chikhda taluka panchayats. Garudeshwar, home to the Statue of Unity, was among the BJP’s biggest setbacks.

The results were widely seen as reflecting sympathy for Chaitar Vasava, even though he was in prison at the time. He was later convicted in June in a 2023 case involving the assault of forest officials.

His absence has not ended AAP’s campaign. His wives, Varsha and Shakuntala, have continued to campaign on his behalf.

The fact that Chaitar Vasava has not yet been disqualified as an MLA is being viewed within the BJP as a sign of caution. A senior party leader said the party was wary of a by-election in Dediapada at present.

“There is still a strong emotional connection with Chaitar among sections of tribal youth. Even in his absence, his influence remains strong,” the leader said. “But the disqualification is inevitable. If the remaining term of the Assembly is less than a year, a by-election need not be held. That has to be factored in.”

Modi’s push for the region

Since inaugurating the Statue of Unity in 2018, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has sought to position Narmada district as a tourism and development hub. Kevadiya was renamed Ekta Nagar, and the Centre has used the area to host major national events.

In September, the National Film Awards were held there for the first time outside Delhi. Modi is also expected to attend the Rashtriya Ekta parade on October 31 to mark Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s birth anniversary.

For the government, such projects underline the region’s transformation and the employment opportunities created for tribal communities. But sections of the local population have raised questions over land, displacement and how much nearby communities have benefited from the economic activity around the Statue of Unity.

That tension reflects the BJP’s larger challenge in the tribal belt: the party points to roads, tourism, public infrastructure and welfare schemes, while critics question land rights and the share of local communities in the development process.

The government has also expanded tribal-focused programmes, including the Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan, aimed at improving welfare delivery and implementation of the Forest Rights Act.

The BJP’s pitch

Tribals account for around 80 lakh of Gujarat’s 6.5 crore population and roughly 14% of the state’s electorate. They are concentrated across 14 districts along the borders with Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.

The BJP has made a sustained effort to build support among tribal communities, highlighting the election of Droupadi Murmu as President and commemorating tribal freedom fighters at Mangadh Hill.

Vasava rejects the charge that the BJP has neglected tribal areas on infrastructure.

“Where water from dams does not reach the nearest villages, the reason is the topography. But the BJP government has brought in alternative water supply schemes,” he said, adding that under the Nal Se Jal programme, most tribal areas from Chhota Udepur to Dahod are now covered.

On PESA, Vasava said the law “needs some fine-tuning”, but added: “The tribal population fundamentally trusts the BJP.”