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BJP launches outreach drive to woo SC voters
BJP’s 7-month-long ‘Samrasta Sankalp Abhiyan’ to commemorate 650th birth anniversary of Guru Ravidas to begin on July 29
With the Punjab assembly elections scheduled early next year, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has launched a statewide outreach programme to woo the Scheduled Caste (SC) community under the banner of ‘Samrasta Sankalp Abhiyan’, coinciding with the 650th birth anniversary of Guru Ravidas.
The campaign, which begins on July 29 (Guru Purnima) and will continue till February 20, 2027 (Magha Purnima), is being seen as the saffron party’s latest effort to strengthen its foothold among Dalit voters ahead of the assembly polls.
Punjab has the highest Dalit population in the country at around 32%, according to the 2011 Census. The community plays a decisive role in the electoral outcome of several assembly constituencies, making it a key political constituency for all major parties.
The campaign, to be conducted under the guidance of the BJP’s national leadership, seeks to propagate Guru Ravidas’ teachings of equality, dignity, social harmony and social justice through a series of religious, cultural and social programmes across Punjab.
Announcing the campaign, Punjab BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon said it is dedicated to celebrating the life and philosophy of Guru Ravidas and taking his message to every section of society.
“This is not a political outreach for us. Guru Ravidas taught the values of equality and social harmony. It is our social responsibility to celebrate his teachings and spread them among all sections of society,” Dhillon said.
However, political observers view the initiative as a carefully planned electoral strategy aimed at winning over Dalit voters, who have traditionally supported the Congress, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and, in recent years, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
Door-to-door campaign with digital monitoring
According to a BJP block president from Hoshiarpur district, the campaign has been meticulously planned to ensure that party workers reach every Dalit household across Punjab. Workers have been instructed to maintain detailed records of every individual contacted during the campaign and upload the data on the party’s mobile application.
The exercise aims to create a comprehensive database of beneficiaries and strengthen the party’s grassroots network in Dalit-dominated areas, particularly in the Doaba region, where the Ravidassia community has a significant presence.
Religious and cultural programmes across state
The first phase of the campaign will begin with the “Samrasta Deep Mahotsav”, during which lamps will be lit at Guru Ravidas temples across Punjab. The celebrations will include “bhajans”, religious discourses, cultural programmes and community “langars” highlighting Guru Ravidas’ message of equality and social justice.
Another major component is the “Kalash Vandan Abhiyan”, under which a sacred “kalash” carrying holy soil from Seer Govardhanpur in Varanasi, the birthplace of Guru Ravidas, will be taken to temples dedicated to him throughout Punjab.
The campaign will also feature the “Sant Sampark Abhiyan”, a “Samrasta Yatra” from Dera Sachkhand Ballan (the most revered religious centre of the Ravidasia community based at Ballan village in Jalandhar) to Seer Govardhanpur in Varanasi, besides student outreach programmes in hostels aimed at familiarising youth with Guru Ravidas’ teachings and philosophy.
To oversee the implementation of the campaign, the BJP has constituted a state-level committee headed by retired IAS officer and Punjab BJP general secretary Dr Jagmohan Singh Raju.
BJP’s sustained focus on Ravidassia community
The outreach programme is part of the BJP’s broader strategy to strengthen its engagement with the Ravidassia community, one of the most influential Dalit communities in Punjab, particularly in the politically significant Doaba region.
In January this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Dera Sachkhand Ballan, reaffirming the party’s efforts to connect with the community’s religious leadership.
The BJP-led central government also announced the Padma Shri for Sant Niranjan Dass, head of Dera Sachkhand Ballan.
During his recent visit to Jalandhar, Modi also flagged off the Amritsar–Varanasi Sleeper Vande Bharat Express from the newly redeveloped Jalandhar Cantonment railway station. The direct rail link between Punjab’s Doaba region and Varanasi fulfils a long-pending demand of the Ravidassia community for improved connectivity to Guru Ravidas’ birthplace.
Party leaders believe that sustained engagement through religious, cultural and social initiatives will help the BJP consolidate support among Scheduled Caste voters and improve its electoral prospects in the 2027 Punjab assembly elections, where Dalit voters are expected to play a decisive role.
