CHANDIGARH: The ECI decision to defer the polling date in Punjab by six days to facilitate the celebration of Guru Ravidas Jayanti by his devotees on February 16 shows how crucial are Dalit votes for various political parties in the state.
Punjab was originally scheduled to go to polls on February 14, but the poll panel, on representation from various political parties, deferred the voting day to February 20 to ensure that Guru Ravidas' devotees do not miss voting due to their largescale travel from Punjab to Varanasi and back to celebrate the seer's birth anniversary.
With Punjab's scheduled caste population constituting 31.94 per cent of the state population, the highest among all states in the country, all the political parties are trying to woo them for the February 20 Punjab assembly polls.
As the Election Commission of India originally fixed the single-phase polling day in Punjab on February 14, two days ahead of the seer's birth anniversary, all the political parties were quick to point out to the poll panel that the Dalit voters, being in transit between Punjab and Varanasi, may miss voting.
Initially the BSP, then Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi followed by the BJP, Punjab Lok Congress, Shiromani Akali Dal (Sanyukt) and the AAP had urged the ECI to defer the polling day beyond the seer's birth anniversary on February 16.
The importance of Dalit votes could also be gauged from the fact the Congress party last year had appointed Charanjit Singh Channi as the state's chief minister, the first person belonging to the SC community to hold this post.
The Shiromani Akali Dal, which broke its ties with the BJP over the farm laws in 2020, tied with the Bahujan Samaj Party last year for the state assembly polls.
The SAD-BSP alliance has also promised to the people of the state that if voted to power, it would make an SC MLA Punjab's deputy chief.
The Aam Aadmi Party too has promised free education to the children of the SC community, besides meeting the cost of their coaching fees for professional courses or competitive exams.
Punjab has a sizeable population of the SC community in Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala and Nawanshahr districts in the state's Doaba region.
Out of the total 117 seats in Punjab, 34 assembly constituencies are reserved for scheduled castes.
Professor Ronki Ram of the Political Science Department at Panjab University said there are a total of 39 SC castes in Punjab.
Prominent among them are 'Chamar', 'Ad-dharmi', 'Balmiki', 'Mazhabi' and 'Rai Sikh' with these five SC sub-castes alone constituting around 80 per cent of the SC population in the state, he said.
'Ad-dharmi' and 'Chamar' are further divided into Ravidasias and Ramdasias, he further pointed out.
It is estimated that there are around 12 lakh Ravidasias who live in the Doaba region.
The Dera Sachkhand Ballan in Jalandhar is the largest dera of Ravidasias in the state.
A large number of followers of Guru Ravidas goes to Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh on his birth anniversary.
Generally, the SC votes are divided among various political parties because of different ideologies and affiliations, say experts, adding that every party tries to woo the SC community with their promises.
Panjab University's Professor Ashutosh Kumar said, "Dalits here are divided along the caste lines, regional lines and religious lines."
Congress candidate from Phagwara seat Balwinder Singh Dhaliwal said Charanjit Singh Channi's appointment as the CM has made a huge difference for the SC community in particular and for the common man in general.
He claimed there is a definite tilt towards the Congress party because of the Channi factor.
Underlining the importance of the Dalit community in the coming elections, Shiromani Akali Dal leader and party vice president Jarnail Singh Wahid said the Scheduled Caste community has an influence on 64 assembly seats in the state.
He further said the workers of both the Akali Dal and the Bahujan Samaj Party are working enthusiastically to ensure the victory of the SAD-BSP alliance in the next month's elections.
Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi had announced last year to set up a Guru Ravidas chair over 101 acres of land to perpetuate the philosophy and teachings of the great saint.
He had also announced the state-of-the-art Dr B R Ambedkar museum for perpetuating the glorious legacy of Baba Saheb.
Besides Channi, Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal among other leaders visited the Dera Sachkhand Ballan in Jalandhar.
SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal last year had promised to bring a world-class university in the Doaba region named after Dr B R Ambedkar and also separate welfare departments for the SC and BC communities.
Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Wednesday said the Bahujan Samaj Party has sold out interests of the Dalits to the Shiromani Akali Dal, with which it has forged an alliance for next month's Assembly polls.
The Punjab CM also said the party has no existence in the state and the BSP pawned off itself to the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD).
The BSP is contesting the Punjab Assembly polls in alliance with the SAD and will be fielding candidates on 20 of 117 seats, according to a seat-sharing arrangement.
Addressing an election meeting in favour of Congress candidate Balwinder Singh Dhaliwal, the CM said, "BSP's founder Kanshi Ramji had a vision and founded the party for the progress of the 'samaj' (SC community) but the party's present leadership in the state has finished the party."
"The BSP claims that it represents 35 per cent of the SC community but why has it accepted only 18 per cent of the seats and not 35 per cent," he asked, adding that even on the 20 seats allotted to it, the party has little prospects.
The Akalis have cleverly kept seats with strong prospects with themselves, he alleged.
"Out of 20 seats, Akalis have very shrewdly put 13 candidates of their own in an indirect way and in reality the BSP has only seven candidates. The BSP has sold out tickets. It has fielded candidates in urban areas, where it has no presence. So don't spoil your votes as neither its state president nor other leaders have any existence in Punjab," said Channi.
Continuing his broadside against the BSP, Channi alleged that the SAD hobnobbed with the BJP and used the BSP to benefit its old ally.
"People have seen through this game of the Akalis that the BSP is being used just as a tool to benefit the BJP," he remarked.
Channi also targeted Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal, claiming that the party spent Rs 400 crore to project the Delhi CM in Punjab.
"But when he got no response, Kejriwal used Bhagwant Mann's name just to hoodwink people," he said.
Channi said he got only 111-day tenure as CM (before the election code came into force) and told people to give the party one more chance for good governance and amelioration of the common man's lot.
He pooh-poohed SAD chief Sukhbir Badal for aping him by playing football "even though he never played any game".