Jharkhand polls: ‘Bangladeshi infiltration’ rhetoric fails as INDIA bloc records big win in Santhal Pargana region

Contrary to their expectations, the BJP has done poorly in this region, with the NDA coalition managing to lead in only one seat in the region

As 60% of the votes are counted in Jharkhand, the JMM-led INDIA bloc is leading in 17 of the 18 seats in Jharkhand’s Santhal Pargana region in the 2024 Assembly elections, four more than its tally in 2019. Located in the north-eastern part of the State, many of the region’s seats border West Bengal. The INDIA bloc also secured about 52% of the votes in the region — its highest vote share across all regions in this election — marking an increase of over 12 percentage points compared to 2019.

In contrast, the NDA coalition managed to lead in only one seat in the region in the 2024 polls, a decline of three seats from 2019.

The issue of “Bangladeshi infiltration” in the Santhal Pargana region was raked up by the Bharatiya Janata Party in its campaign for this year’s Jharkhand Assembly elections. The party framed the issue as a threat to Jharkhand’s identity as an Adivasi state, linking it to alleged “demographic changes” in the region, crimes against tribal women, land alienation, and the perceived erosion of indigenous cultural practices.

The BJP’s top leadership and star campaigners reinforced this rhetoric with the slogan “protect Adivasis’ Roti, Beti, and Mati,” accusing the JMM-Congress-RJD alliance of enabling “infiltration” to secure their voter base. This narrative was paired with efforts to unite SC/ST/OBC groups under the slogan “Ek Hain to Safe Hain,” aiming to disrupt the INDIA bloc’s long-standing coalition of Muslims and Adivasis.

The JMM countered this narrative on three fronts: holding the BJP-led Union government responsible for controlling infiltration; branding BJP star campaigners as “outsiders” unable to prevent atrocities against tribals in their own states; and citing BJP MPs’ suggestions to carve out Santhal Pargana from Jharkhand as evidence that the BJP sought to “break” the state.

To bolster its campaign, the BJP deployed its tallest leaders, including former JMM stalwarts like Lobin Hembrom and Champai Soren, who joined the BJP before the elections, driven by the “infiltration” issue. The Sangh Parivar’s Vanvasi Kalyan Ashrams also played a role, promising an NRC if the BJP came to power. Social media was flooded with BJP advertisements on the “infiltration” narrative, one of which drew a rebuke from the Election Commission of India.

Contrary to their expectations, the BJP has done poorly in this region. According to latest trends, in the Santhal Pargana region, Anant Kumar Ojha who held the Rajmahal seat for three consecutive election cycles, is losing to the JMM candidate this time.

Lobin Hembrom (Borio), who switched to the BJP ahead of the polls citing infiltration issues, is losing.

Sita Murmu Soren, daughter-in-law of Shibu Soren, who quit the JMM and joined the BJP ahead of the polls, is losing by a significant margin to the Congress candidate.

The table shows the vote share secured by the alliances in the 2024 Assembly polls (in %) and the change from the 2019 polls (in % points)

Observations from the table

• The INDIA bloc recorded the highest vote share in the Santhal Pargana region.
• The 12.3 percentage point increase in vote share in the region is also the largest jump for the alliance across all regions.

The table shows the seats led by the alliances in the 2024 Assembly polls and the change from the 2019 polls

Published - November 23, 2024 05:59 pm IST