Union Minister of State Ravneet Singh Bittu confirmed that the PM would arrive at Ballan Dera at 4 pm after participating in the morning Budget Session in Parliament.
Ahead of next year’s Punjab Assembly elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to visit Dera Sachkhand Ballan in Jalandhar on Sunday, February 1, a move seen as politically significant.
Union Minister of State Ravneet Singh Bittu confirmed that the PM would arrive at Ballan Dera at 4 pm after participating in the morning Budget Session in Parliament.
The Prime Minister’s visit will align with the 649th Birth Anniversary of Guru Ravidas Ji. In recent years, the PM has been visiting Seer Govardhan, the birthplace of Guru Ravidass located in Varanasi, his own electoral area. This year’s plan to visit Dera Ballan, a highly esteemed site for the Ravidassia community in Punjab, on Ravidass Jayanti holds great importance, as the majority of Ravidas community is identified as either Dalit or Sikh with a considerable portion also being Hindu and Dalits represent approximately 34 percent of Punjab’s population.
Analysts stated that the chance to impact this significant vote is evidently too crucial to miss.
Ahead of the Assembly election, where the situation appears unclear at this moment, it is evident that the PM and the BJP will strive to present their strongest image. The head of Dera Ballan, Sant Niranjan Dass, received the Padma Shri during this year’s Republic Day ceremony.
The Dera head received the Padma Shri after a meeting with the Prime Minister in New Delhi approximatelytwo months ago.
During that period, Sant Niranjan Dass was with various BJP leaders, including former Chief Parliamentary Secretary (CPS) Avinash Chander, state general secretary Tarun Chugh, and former Union Minister of State Vijay Sampla. Sant Niranjan Dass oversees the religious sites in Varanasi and Ballan Dera.
Each year, on the night before Ravidass Jayanti, Sant Niranjan Dass leads a special train carrying almost 2,000 devotees to Varanasi, which will also be inaugurated this year on January 29. This time, though, he might take the train and fly back to Ballan to attend the PM’s visit here.
The planned visit of the PM has already provided the Punjab BJP with a fresh boost. Party leaders mentioned they anticipate a major announcement from the PM on that day. “A former BJP MP, who spoke to The Tribune on condition of anonymity, stated thatthe PM might rename the airport in Adampur after Guru Ravidass.”
Given that the PM’s visit comes before Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s on February 22, there is evidently a noticeable enthusiasm within the party.
Guru Ravidass’ supporters are requesting that detailed preparations be made for the 650th Guru Ravidass Jayanti occurring next year. “According to Avinash Chander, the PM’s visit will launch the year-long celebrations ofthe guru,” The Tribune reported.
The Aam Aadmi Party has also been preparing for a significant event, including a state-level celebration on the Jayanti, but the BJP has distinctly gained an advantage with this action. AAP intends to purchase 12 acres of land for establishing the Guru Ravidass Research Centre close to the Dera. The research centre’s announcement was initially made by Charanjit Channi, the former Congress chief minister. Dera officials informed this reporter that both the Congress and AAP CMs conducted photoshoots with the Dera chief, each presenting him with a Rs 25 crore cheque, yet there has been no tangible progress.
Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is anticipated to attend the ‘tapo-asthan’ of Guru Ravidass at Khuralgarh in Hoshiarpur on February 6, where the 151-foot-high Minar-e-Begampura will be inaugurated.
