BJP national president Nitin Nabin stepped up the party’s outreach to the Dalit community in western Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday, visiting the Sant Shiromani Guru Ravidas Temple in Saharanpur and later having lunch at the home of a Dalit community member.
Nabin was on a two day visit to Uttar Pradesh on September 21 and 22, where he reviewed the party’s organisational work, interacted with young people and discussed preparations for the 2027 Assembly elections.
At the Ravidas temple in Saharanpur, Nabin offered prayers and spoke about Sant Ravidas’s message of social harmony and equality. Members of the Dalit community presented him with a statue of Sant Ravidas and a book.
He later had lunch at the residence of Ajab Singh, president of the Shri Ravidas Temple Committee. Nabin described Singh as a “source of pride” for the Dalit community.
Nabin Talks About Social Harmony
Nabin said the BJP was working to bring people from different communities and regions together.
He described the meal at the home of a grassroots Dalit activist as more than a social visit, linking it to the party’s stated principles of “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas” and Antyodaya.
The outreach comes as the BJP focuses on its organisational preparations in western UP ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections. The Samajwadi Party has also been promoting its PDA, or Pichhda, Dalit and Alpsankhyak, political plank in the state.
BJP Reviews Booth Level Preparations
After his visit to the temple and the Dalit community member’s home, Nabin held organisational meetings in Saharanpur and Meerut.
In Saharanpur, he met local MPs, MLAs and party office bearers and interacted with grassroots workers. The meetings focused on strengthening the party organisation and reviewing booth level preparations for the 2027 elections.
Nabin also stressed the need to strengthen coordination among party workers and improve the delivery of government welfare schemes to eligible beneficiaries, according to the Times of India.
Saharanpur’s Dalit Population
According to the 2011 Census, Scheduled Castes made up 22.05 percent of Saharanpur district’s population. The district had a total population of about 34.66 lakh at the time.
Saharanpur has seven Assembly constituencies, including Rampur Maniharan, which is reserved for Scheduled Caste candidates. In the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, the BJP won five of the seven seats, while the Samajwadi Party won two.
