Chandigarh, Jan 14 (IANS) Traditionally, political rallies by all major political parties have been organised in Punjab’s Muktsar town to mark Maghi, commemorating the martyrdom of the 40 ‘Muktas’ (liberated ones) who laid down their lives while fighting against the Mughals in 1705.

In a first, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) organised a grand religious event in Muktsar on Wednesday amid the presence of the party’s central and state leadership, signalling its intent to form the government in the state on its own in March 2027.

In the political conferences that normally see convergence of lakhs of devotees to mark the day, the presence of the BJP at a platform also projected itself as being deeply immersed in the ethos of Punjab and ‘Punjabiyat’, believe political observers.

They say that through this event, the BJP has made it clear that it is preparing to form the government in 2027 without relying on any alliance as a “crutch.”

This message serves as a direct warning to the ruling Aam Aadmi Party and the main Opposition Congress in the state.

Interestingly, the former is holding the rally after a gap of a decade, while the latter has decided not to hold the political event on the occasion.

The Malwa region, comprising Muktsar, the home district of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Badal, has long been considered a stronghold of the Badal family.

Organising such a massive event in the villages of this region indicates that the BJP is now breaking traditional political boundaries.

The three-day Maghi Mela, which will conclude on Thursday, sees crowds of devotees from across Punjab and neighbouring states take a holy dip at historic gurdwaras in Muktsar, mainly a day after Lohri.

A political analyst told IANS that by organising such an event on the sacred occasion of the Maghi Mela, the BJP has made it clear that the Sikh community is now walking shoulder to shoulder with the party.

The event is also an attempt to dilute the allegation that the BJP is merely an urban or Hindu-centric party, highlighting its broader social acceptance.

Against the “misinformation” campaigns by AAP and the Congress against the repealed Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), the BJP had organised massive public meetings in Fazilka, Jalandhar Cantonment, Sujanpur, Samrala, and Fatehgarh Sahib on the new rural employment scheme to present its stand.

During the monsoon floods in the state, the BJP prominently delivered relief material by deploying its central leadership and Union ministers, including Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who assessed crop losses and listened to grievances of farmers by stepping into water-marooned fields in scores of villages of Punjab.

Even Governor Gulab Chand Kataria paid a courtesy visit to Union Minister Chouhan at the Amritsar airport and handed over a detailed report on the floods.

After the floods, door-to-door assessments of losses were conducted by the party, and essential items were delivered directly to affected families at their doorsteps.

“Extending a helping hand to those facing the brunt of natural calamity is turning out to be a game changer for the party to strengthen its foothold in rural areas too where on earlier occasions there had been noticeable dissent, mainly among farmers and farm labourers, since three agricultural reform laws were repealed by the Modi government,” a senior BJP leader admitted to IANS on the condition of anonymity.

He pointed out the various flood relief camps set up by the BJP in Jalandhar that hogged the limelight, showcasing the scale of the relief work.

Also, BJP-ruled states — Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, and Goa — extended financial assistance by contributing to the Punjab Chief Minister’s Relief Fund and by dispatching relief material via trucks and trains.

On the political front, the BJP recently organised a sit-in and demonstrations at more than 500 locations across Punjab in a single day to protest the government’s failure to fulfil its electoral promises.

Through district-level protests, marches to the Chief Minister’s residence and programmes like the ‘Janta Vidhan Sabha’, the BJP is attempting to reach out and establish contact at the grassroots.

(Vishal Gulati can be contacted at vishal.g@ians.in)

–IANS

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