Chandigarh: Rajya Sabha member Satnam Singh Sandhu has called for an end to the long-pending wait for rights and opportunities for Punjab’s liberated, nomadic and semi-nomadic communities, saying decades of political promises must now translate into concrete action.
Speaking at the 75th Vimukt Jati Diwas celebration held at the Haryana Chief Minister’s residence and hosted by Chief Minister Naib Singh Saini, Sandhu said the concerns of these communities should be addressed through tangible measures covering education, employment, livelihood, health, economic empowerment, identity and representation.
“The liberated society of Punjab has heard a lot of promises—now it is time to convert the promises into rights,” Sandhu said.
Leaders and representatives of liberated, nomadic and semi-nomadic communities from Punjab and Haryana attended the event. Sandhu thanked Saini for hosting the programme and said the initiative had helped provide a sense of pride, identity and belonging to communities that had remained neglected for decades.
Sandhu said Saini had outlined measures being implemented in Haryana for the welfare of liberated castes and had assured the gathering that their long-pending issues concerning the Central Government would be raised effectively with the Centre.
The Rajya Sabha member said successive governments in Punjab had made commitments to several communities, including Bauria, Bazigar, Sansi, Bengali, Barar, Gandhila, Nat, Rai Sikh, Od, Marasi and Sikligar Sikh, but many of those promises remained unfulfilled.
He said generations of these communities had suffered the consequences of what he termed political breaches of promise in the form of backwardness and limited opportunities.
“The generations of the liberated society have paid the price for this political breach of promises for decades in the form of backwardness and lack of opportunities,” Sandhu said.
He said the communities had made an important contribution to preserving Punjab’s traditional culture despite difficult circumstances. Folk arts, handicrafts, traditional skills and heritage occupations had been passed down through generations, he added.
“If this heritage is to be saved, then the hands that preserve it will also have to be strengthened,” Sandhu said.
Sandhu also highlighted initiatives undertaken by the Narendra Modi government for the education, livelihood, healthcare and economic empowerment of liberated, nomadic and semi-nomadic communities.
He said the BJP viewed the issue not merely as a political commitment but as a matter of social justice and the fulfilment of legitimate rights.
Sandhu said issues concerning Punjab’s liberated communities had already been raised in the Rajya Sabha and would continue to be pursued in Parliament and at other appropriate forums.
“The wait for this society should not be long now. The Bharatiya Janata Party stands firmly with them to implement the due rights, respect and justice of the liberated society,” he said.
Community leaders, including Rajinder Singh Desu Yodha, Waheguru Singh Kabalwala, Jaspal Singh Panjgrain, Jasvir Singh Doomwali, Paramjit Singh Bargari, Malkit Singh Hira, Buta Ram Bazigar and Labh Singh of the Sikligar community, have long been raising issues concerning the rights and welfare of Punjab’s liberated communities.
