Dalit candidates rarely win unreserved seats even with high party support

Evidence

Even today, it is rare for a Dalit candidate to win from a general, non-reserved constituency—irrespective of the party she represents. In fact, this has not been possible even at the height of the BSP’s popularity in Uttar Pradesh. During the 2007 assembly elections in the state, the BSP fielded only four of its ninety-three Dalit candidates in general constituencies. The non-Dalit vote in a general constituency does not easily transfer to a Dalit, it seems, as all four lost; meanwhile, sixty-two of the eighty-nine candidates fielded in reserved constituencies won. — Ambedkar, B R, Annihilation of Caste_ The Annotated…, 1340