Cong eyes tribal votes in MP, to come up with 'Scheduled Tribes Charter'

Bhopal: The Congress is set to come out with a specific proposal for the tribal communities ahead of the Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh.

The proposal named -- ‘Scheduled Tribe Charter’ -- would be a blueprint consisting of rights of the tribals and to monitor the various government schemes for the community. It would also offer various services, including providing legal aid for the tribal people in Madhya Pradesh.

An indication about the ‘Scheduled Tribe Charter’ was made by AICC general secretary and the Madhya Pradesh in-charge Randeep Surjewala during a press conference at party headquarters recently.

It would be a specific proposal for empowering all sections of tribal community, which has more than 21 per cent population in the state and it would be beyond the election manifesto of the Congress.

The team Congress that has been tasked to prepare a detailed chart has almost completed it and would be presented before Kamal Nath for his final approval, sources said.

A Congress leader claimed it would offer specific schemes and services for all sections of the tribals such as -- women, youth, senior citizens, working class and farmers, etc.

The Congress leader said the 'charter' will be offering services like effective implementation of ST/SC Act. The idea is to provide legal advice on a regular basis to those facing charges in different cases.

He further claimed that a nutrition scheme for women and subsidised loan schemes would also be part of the charter. The Congress leader said the team tasked to prepare the plan is also reviewing the schemes implemented in some other states.

"Although, the state government has various schemes for the tribals, but is lacking a specific mechanism which can ensure effective implementation of all these schemes. Therefore, the plan will be to ensure that all schemes are monitored regularly and implemented on the ground," Congress leader told IANS requesting not to be named.

Madhya Pradesh has a sizeable population of tribals who enjoy the consequent electoral clout. Out of 230 Assembly seats, as many as 47 are recognised as Scheduled Tribes across the state’s 52 districts, of these, the Congress bagged 32 in 2018 elections.

Recently, addressing a gathering of tribals in Bhopal, Kamal Nath has stated, "Adivasis have Congress DNA" and he trusted the Adivasi community the most and was sure that it would help the party come back to power in Madhya Pradesh.