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The paper investigates the impact of a unique decentralisation program introduced in India's Schedule Five Areas - home to 100 million indigenous people (Scheduled Tribes or STs) - on their maternal health-seeking behaviour. ST women typically underutilized maternal care due to limited healthcare services and distrust in government facilities.  This program institutionalised local councils and introduced political representation for STs in these local councils, granting them authority over public goods provision. Using three rounds of a large-scale reproductive health survey and a difference-in-difference analysis with staggered program implementation, we show that the policy led to increased utilisation of antenatal care services, particularly from government facilities. Additionally, we observe a reduction in delivery complications and a greater reliance on government services for managing these complications. We provide suggestive evidence that the effect is driven by improvement in the trust placed by the STs in the health care system when local political representatives belong to their community.