The BJP has entered top gear in election-bound Punjab with party president Nitin Nabin set to visit Jalandhar on November 18 to flag off the Samrasta Yatra, which commemorates the 650th birth anniversary of Sant Guru Ravidas.The yatra — a major political outreach centered around a prominent Scheduled Caste segment — will start from Jalandhar and culminate in Varanasi on December 5. The yatra will cover seven states and UTs — Punjab, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh) and 46 cities of the country.”It will start from near Dera Ballan Sachkhand in Jalandhar on November 18. BJP President Nitin Nabin will flag it off and address a massive gathering on the occasion,” said a top BJP source.The Ravidassia community is a prominent Dalit socio-religious group in Punjab that follows the teachings of the 15th-century Bhakti saint Guru Ravidas. Dera Sachkhand Ballan – which Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently visited — is the largest and most influential spiritual center of the community. It is located in Ballan village near Jalandhar and has played a central role in shaping the community’s distinct religious identity, social welfare, and political influence. Ravidassias are a major political swing group in Punjab, and all parties have wooed them over the years.Prime Minister Narendra Modi has personally been leading the celebrations around the event. The PM’s own Lok Sabha constituency, Varanasi, is the birthplace of Sant Ravidas. Earlier at the Sant Guru Ravidas Janmasthali temple at Seer Goverdhanpur near BHU, the Prime Minister had inaugurated a statue of Sant Ravidas in the adjoining Ravidas Park.The PM also inaugurated various development works around Sant Ravidas Janam Sthali worth about Rs 32 crores and laid the foundation stone for the Sant Ravidas Museum and beautification of the park worth about Rs 62 crore.PM Modi has said, “Sant Ravidas ji was a great saint of the Bhakti movement, which gave new energy to a weak and divided India. Sant Ravidas ji told society the importance of freedom and also worked to bridge the social divide.” The PM said Sant Ravidas belongs to everyone, and everyone belongs to Ravidas ji.“The Government is taking forward the teachings and ideals of Sant Ravidas ji while following the mantra of ‘Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas.’ We have to avoid the negative mentality of casteism and follow the positive teachings of Sant Ravidas ji,” PM Modi said.