Chief of Dera Sachkhand Ballan Sant Niranjan Das on Thursday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his official residence. Sant Niranjan Das was accompanied by multiple senior BJP leaders including National General Secretary Tarun Chugh, former Union MoS Vijay Sampla, Avinash Chander, senior BJP leader, and 7 to 8 member of Dera Sachkhand Ballan.
As per reports, meeting between Sant Niranjan Das and PM Modi lasted for 1 hour. During the meeting Sant Niranjan Das invited PM Modi to visit Dera Sachkhand Ballan's next samagam ceremony. Notably, Guru Ravidas Jayanti is on February 12.
Notably, meeting between Sant Niranjan Das and PM Modi has raised many political eyebrows. For those who are unaware, Dera Ballan along with other deras play asignificant role in state and national politics. National leaders of various political parties keep visiting Dera Ballan to take the blessing of head Sant Niranjan Das.
There are multiple Deras in Punjab, which has followers from across the state, outside the state, and even among NRIs.
One such popular Dera in Punjab is Dera Sachkhand Ballan in Jalandhar. Based on the teachings of Sant Ravidass, Dera Sachkhand is a powerful religious institution that has been prospering since the 1980s.
The dera was established in the twentieth century and it is the Mecca of the Ravidassia community, who are predominant in the Doaba region.
The dera's political weight stems from the sheer force of numbers. Because Dalits make up 32% of Punjab's population- the largest percentage in any state, practically all political parties make it a point to meet with Dera heads before the elections to secure their support.
Over a third of Punjab's population (12 percent) identify as Ravidassias ( followers of Sant Ravidas).
The majority of Dalit or Scheduled Castes (SC) people live in the Doaba region, which has an SC population of roughly 45 percent.
The region sends 23 legislators to the 117-member state assembly. Dera has direct influence over at least 19 seats and the Ravidassia community's vote share ranges from 20% to 50%.