Diaspora groups often maintain links with religious organizations in their areas of origin. As a diaspora

community becomes more prosperous, the links between it and religious centres in its area of origin

develop new dimensions. A case study of Dera Sant Sarwan Dass in Ballan, Punjab (DSSDB) and the

Ravidassi religious movement with which it is associated demonstrates the complexity of such links

and their implications for a religious movement associated with a lower caste group.

Religious centres established by devout Hindus or Sikhs are scattered all over India, including Punjab.

This study investigated one such centre in depth, through historical analyses of the role of religion in

transforming the lives of marginalized caste groups in Punjab and the origins and characteristics of

the Dera itself; visits to DSSD and the social facilities it has established in India and religious centres

associated with the movement in England; and numerous semi-structured interviews with key

informants in Punjab and the UK, particularly the West Midlands.

Dera Sant Sarwan Dass Ballan (DSSDB) was established by a Sikh sant in the 1920s. A low caste

Chamar himself, dismayed by the ongoing marginalization of the caste, especially by Jat Sikh

landlords, he referred to a mediaeval saint, Ravidass, himself a Chamar, to provide inspiration for a

new religious movement, most of whose followers were Chamars. The Ravidassi movement and the

DSSDB itself have been guided by a succession of sants, who amongst other ways of tackling

disadvantage based on caste, stressed the importance of education and the opportunities offered by

migration. As a result, early South Asian migrants to Asia, Europe and North America, including the UK,

included an unexpectedly large proportion of Chamars.

The links between Chamars in the UK and their area of origin (the Doaba region of Punjab) have a

number of dimensions. Primarily, they are family links.

However, they also have a religious dimension, at least in part out of gratitude for the religious inspiration

and support that encouraged them to aspire to more dignified and prosperous lives than available in

India. Gradually, the experience of continued caste discrimination in the UK has led them to establish

Ravidassi places of worship distinct from mainstream Sikh gurdwaras, a process of religious identity

formation that has periodically given rise to considerable tension.

On its part, the DSSDB has made considerable efforts to maintain the links, enabling it to invest in

religious buildings (not just in Ballan and nearby locations, but also in Varanasi, the birthplace of

Ravidass) and establish social facilities, such as hospitals and schools. Members of the community in

the UK have not only donated significant amounts for these purposes, they have also influenced

organizational and other characteristics of the DSSDB projects in India that they finance.

The education and health services provided are open to all regardless of religion or caste, and are

deliberately of high quality, although they also all have provisions to ensure that poor users can gain

access. This combination of characteristics, they believe, secures recognition by members of other

religions and castes (especially higher castes) of both the group’s religious principles and its socioeconomic

progress.

The study illustrates how religious transnational practices have aided community formation among a

marginalized group from the South, through the pursuit of a new religious identity, and enabled it to

significantly transform its social, economic and political status, in both its homeland and overseas

settings. Beyond religious activities, the community has invested in education and health facilities in its

area of origin. These make only a limited contribution to the achievement of development objectives in

Punjab as a whole: their significance is in improving the social status of a previously marginalized

community.

Wider implications of the findings include:

The total contribution of social services funded through transnational remittances may be significant, not

only in terms of finance but also because of the associated flows of ideas and practices – social

remittances – further documentation and study of this phenomenon could contribute to improving

understanding of governance and the development process in migrants’ areas of origin.

Any attempt to harness migrant remittances for development purposes must be underpinned by a

sound understanding of the complex motives and social and political dynamics that characterize

transnational links.