Social activist Medha Patkar believes that the BJP has fielded tribal leader Draupadi Murmu as the National Democratic Alliance’s (NDA) Presidential candidate only because the community forms a major part of the vote bank but the party is not pro-Adivasi.
Wondering what could Draupadi Murmu who could not bring electricity to her native village, or Yashwant Sinha, the Presidential nominee of major Opposition parties and an economist, could do after being elected, Ms. Patkar claimed that a President becomes the rubber stamp of the ruling party.
"They [the BJP] want a tribal person like her and celebrate Birsa Munda Jayanti because they know that Adivasis form a major part of the vote bank in several States such as Madhya Pradesh. They cannot claim to be pro-Advasi by not granting them forest rights and planning to hand over forests to the corporates," Ms. Patkar told PTI in a telephone interview.
