Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to visit Jalandhar on Sunday i.e. February , 2026. PM Modi will visit Dera Sachkhand Ballan to pay his obeisance on 649th anniversary of Sri Guru Ravidas Jayanti. Union MoS Ravneet Bittu confirmed PM Modi's visit and said that his visit to Dera Sachkhand Ballan should not be seen as political.
Talking to a news channel, Bittu said, "Punjab is the land of Gurus. I don't think PM Modi's visit to Jalandhar should be seen as political. We also witnessed Punjab’s Republic Day tableau that paid tribute to 350 years of Martyrdom of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib Ji."
For the unversed, Chief of Dera Sachkhand Ballan Sant Niranjan Das in December 2025 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.
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.
Although MoS Ravneet Bittu has said that PM Modi's visit to Dera Ballan should be seen as political, it is an undeniable fact that it holds an important role in Punjab.
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 Sri Guru 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%.
