New Delhi:Behind the ongoing political battle over the alleged insult of B.R. Ambedkar, there appears to be a concerted effort by the BJP and the Congress, along with its India bloc partners, to win over the 17 per cent Dalit votes in the country. Union home minister Amit Shah’s remark in the Rajya Sabha gave the Opposition an opportunity to whip up anti-BJP sentiments among the Dalits, the objective is clear — the Congress wants to further consolidate the 4 per cent Dalit votes it gained in the last general election over the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. And the BJP seeks to regain the Dalit voteshare it lost.
Concerned with the loss of Dalit voteshare in the last Lok Sabha polls as compared to the general election in 2019, the top BJP leadership, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Shah, came forward to counter the Opposition's allegations of B.R. Ambedkar's "insult” during the debate on the 75 years of the Constitution.
In the Lok Sabha polls held earlier this year, the Congress won 20 of the 84 Lok Sabha seats reserved for Scheduled Caste candidates, while its allies won 33 seats, taking the total India bloc tally to 53 seats. The BJP, on the other hand, came down to 29 seats in 2024 from its victory in 46 seats in 2019. The NDA overall won 39 SC reserved seats in the 2024 polls.
The Congress vote share increased by 4 per cent in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections against 16.7 per cent in the 2019 elections. While the ruling BJP got 34.5 per cent of the Dalit votes in 2024 in SC reserved seats, which was 1 per cent less than what it got in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
The BJP is working hard to prevent any further cracks in its Dalit vote share as they hold the key to its electoral success in the next year’s Assembly polls in Delhi and Bihar. The Dalit factor will also play an important role in Assembly polls in West Bengal, Assam and Tamil Nadu scheduled in March-April 2026.
The Dalits do not follow a similar voting pattern across the country, but, it has been noted, whichever alliance or party received their support had won more seats. Despite having a similar nature of political contest, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar voted differently in the recent Lok Sabha polls. The I.N.D.I.A. bloc won 43 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh out of 80, while the NDA won only 36. In Bihar, the NDA led by the BJP won 30 seats and the I.N.D.I.A. bloc won nine.
Amid the sudden spurt of political activity surrounding "Dalit hero" B.R. Ambedkar, Congress Lok Sabha MP Kumari Selja, a veteran Dalit leader, said that the BJP is trying to usurp the legacy of B.R. Ambedkar. She said, “The BJP and their founding fathers have always stood against the policies and thoughts of B.R. Ambedkar. Suddenly they have discovered this love for him.”
BJP national spokesperson Guru Prakash Paswan said that the Congress believes it is the custodian of Babasaheb's legacy, but it is not true.
“The Congress opposition to Babasaheb is known to everyone. Their claim to his legacy is unnatural and irrelevant. The Congress is far behind us (the BJP). History and evidence are against them," Paswan said, adding, "The BJP government led by Modi has given maximum share and representation to the Dalit community in the last 10 years."
Dubbing the ongoing slugfest between the BJP and the Congress over the legacy of B.R. Ambedkar “sheer politics”, Lok Sabha MP from Nagina and chief of the Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) Chandra Shekhar said that it is clearly visible that they (the Congress and the BJP) are doing politics over Babasaheb.
“What do you think is going on here? With an eye on political dividends, they (the BJP and the Congress) are showing themselves as followers of Babasaheb. They are doing politics and people know this,” Azad said.
Political parties, including both the Congress and the BJP, recognise the sensitivities and importance of the Dalits voters. The BJP not only sought to corner the Opposition, particularly the Congress, over the alleged insult of B.R. Ambedkar, but it also moved fast on the issue of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
In 2018, when Yogi Adityanath’s Uttar Pradesh government moved to add “Ramji” to B.R. Ambedkar’s name in official records, widespread protests broke out. The BJP defended the use of Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar’s full name, but the move was met with suspicion, as “B.R. Ambedkar” is the standard in official documents.
