- BJP won all 16 ST reserved seats in West Bengal and 51 of 68 SC constituencies
- In Assam, BJP-led NDA won 5 of 9 SC and all 19 ST reserved constituencies
- BJP allies BPF and AGP helped consolidate tribal votes in Assam's Bodoland and Upper Assam
The BJP and its allies have scripted a massive victory across reserved constituencies for Scheduled Castes and Tribes in West Bengal and Assam, delivering one of the clearest signs yet of the party's expansion in eastern India.
According to data accessed by NDTV, the BJP swept all 16 Scheduled Tribe reserved seats in West Bengal and won 51 of the state's 68 Scheduled Caste constituencies, reducing the Trinamool Congress to just 17 seats in the reserved category.
The results mark a major political shift in Bengal where reserved seats have traditionally seen fragmented contests involving the Trinamool Congress, the Left and regional forces. BJP leaders said the party's success reflected a strong consolidation among Matua voters, Dalit communities and tribal groups across North Bengal, Jangalmahal and border districts.
Overall, the BJP secured 67 of Bengal's 84 SC and ST reserved seats, turning constituencies once seen as difficult terrain into one of the biggest contributors to the party's performance in the state.
In Assam too, the BJP-led NDA recorded near total dominance in reserved seats. Of nine reserved constituencies for Scheduled Castes, the BJP won five while alliance partner AGP secured three. Congress managed to retain only one seat.
The NDA was even more dominant in Scheduled Tribe constituencies, winning all 19 reserved seats in the state. The BJP won 13 of them while allies BPF and AGP added the remaining seats to the alliance tally.
Party leaders credited the result to tribal mobilisation, alliance coordination and the impact of delimitation, which increased the number of ST reserved constituencies in Assam from 16 to 19 and SC reserved seats from eight to nine.
In Bodoland and Upper Assam regions, BJP allies BPF and AGP played a crucial role in consolidating indigenous and tribal votes, helping the NDA shut out the opposition completely from tribal constituencies.
The party's gains were not limited to the east.
In Tamil Nadu, NDA ally AIADMK won nine of the state's 46 Scheduled Caste reserved seats and one of the two Scheduled Tribe constituencies. In Puducherry, NDA ally AINRC won two of the Union Territory's five SC reserved seats.
Within the BJP, the results are being viewed as evidence that the party has expanded its social coalition well beyond its traditional support base. Reserved constituencies, once considered vulnerable pockets for the BJP in eastern India, have now emerged as a central pillar of the party's electoral strategy.
